Back to Duel
by Setoglomper
Summary: Jaden and company enter Year 3 at Duel Academy. Meanwhile, top-ranking professional duelists are vanishing without a trace; but for one duelist, that isn't his only concern. And for another, an opportunity for revenge surfaces once more...
1. Chapter 1

Hello readers! This is my first GX story. It does follow the 3rd season storyline _to a point_. Some things remain the same as in the anime, but not everything. Anything written after the incident with Professor Cobra/Viper is completely my own. Well, if I follow the original plan I made, it should. Most likely I'll change it in the middle…

_**Disclaimer**_: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX. I only own original characters that don't really appear until at least the second half of the story. The original characters aren't really important. Yu-Gi-Oh! GX belongs to Kazuki Takahashi…or at least, if I'm wrong, it belongs to the guy who made it…KT made YGO and YGO-GX, right? I'm not going insane now, am I?

* * *

Chapter 1

As a new school year starts, friends reunite with each other, chatting descriptively of their exciting summers and teachers preparing for a fresh new wave of students.

Duel Academy is no different.

As new students wander aimlessly toward their orientation in the large duel arena, returning learners mingle in the courtyards, hallways, and dorm lobbies.

The new school year chatter all over the campus was silenced when the voice of Chancellor Shepard echoed throughout the campus. As the loudspeaker turns off, the students file into the main academic building, toward the large auditorium where the GX Tournament was announced only months before.

A few, however, remained behind. Within the shade of a large willow tree, a small group of students remained.

"C'mon, Jaden, we're going to be late," said Syrus Truesdale. He and his friends had now become upperclassmen in the large academy, a status that meant less people were allowed to pick on him. Before, everyone picked on Syrus, mainly because of his childish nature and short stature. Now, with the overpopulation of the freshman class, and due to the large previous graduating class, there were fewer students who knew Syrus to truly get on his nerves.

Jaden Yuki was lying on the grass, staring at the clouds. He sighed, and turned to his bluenette friend, "for what? It is lunch time already?"

Alexis Rhodes, the only girl friend within the group shook her head in amusement, "no Jaden. Chancellor Shepard just announced the start of the assembly – and if we don't get out from under this tree now, there won't be any good seats left."

Alexis's brother, Atticus, was against the tree, stringing his ukulele (A/N: Is that what it even is? I don't think it's a guitar…) along with humming a tune. It seemed he didn't even hear what his sister had said.

"Well, let's go then," said Jaden, getting up."

"Jay, you need to pay more attention."

Hassleberry, the only one a year younger than the others, chuckled, "you know the Sarge. If he's not eating or dueling, it ain't important."

Alexis brushed the excess grass from her skirt, "c'mon, Atti."

Atticus turned to his sister, "huh?"

"The assembly. C'mon!"

"Oh, right!"

* * *

Upon reaching the large auditorium, Jaden and his friends settled themselves in one of the middle rows. Chancellor Shepard was speaking with Vice Chancellors Crowler and Bonaparte, his back to the students.

A large gaggle of girls were near the front of the room, gossiping about who-knows-what. One of them casually looked around for a clock, but her eyes settled upon something else. After a massive squeal, she bolted to one of the exits. Another of the other Obelisk girls watched her ascend the steps.

"What's with her?" she asked, "I've never seen Chrissie act this way – you would have thought she had seen some sort of teenage dueling heartthrob or something!"

"She did!" said Amanda, running up the steps.

Seated, the gang watched the rest of the girls approach the door.

"Ehh, what's going on with them?" asked Jaden, "you think they would have been all love struck over Chazz when he won that GX Tournament!"

"Yea! Nobody ignores The Chazz!"

Syrus whispered to Hassleberry, "let's ignore him…"

"Go see what's going on, Sarge."

"Uh, okay. Save my seat," Jaden stood and tried to sort through the pack. He was able to make out what a few of the girls were saying.

"Oh, you poor thing!"

"Let me carry your things for you!"

"Let him be and let _me_ carry his duel disk!"

"Shut up Amy!"

"Did you see that? He smiled at me!"

"No, he did that to me!"

"Oh, shut up you two! He totally winked at _me_!"

"Excuse me, coming through. Duelist trying to move here…"

"Oh, hey Jaden," said a rather familiar and un-female voice. Jaden pushed through the final ring of people.

"Aster!"

" 'Sup Jaden?" Aster waved from his spot within the circle of fangirls. He still wore his silver suit, but was a bit different since Jaden last saw him. Aster had a bandage over his left eyebrow and his right foot was in a cast. The pro duelist was leaning on crutches.

"What happened to you?"

Aster glanced around, "I'll tell you later…"

It was at least ten minutes later that Jaden returned with Aster.

"Well, what do you know, it's Private Phoenix!" said Hassleberry, then he added, "looks like he went through battle!".

"Scoot over a seat, Chazz," Aster poked him with a crutch. Finally seated, everyone moved their seats so they were all seated nearer each other.

"So, what happened?" asked Atticus, seated behind the pro.

"Ah, you'd laugh at me."

"No we wouldn't, Aster…"

"Oh, you're right. _Chazz_ would laugh."

"Would not! The Chazz makes fun of no one…except Slacker and his side-kick Shorty."

"English Chazz…I don't attend here on a daily basis…"

"Oh, right. I only save the insults for Jaden and Syrus."

"That's not fair! You can't make fun of me and not Hassleberry!"

"Watch it half-pint! He doesn't make fun of _me_ because _I am _Jaden's best friend!"

"NO, I AM!"

"I AM!"

"I'VE KNOWN HIM LONGER!"

"HE'S MY COMMANDIN' OFFICER!"

"THIS ISN'T THE MILITARY!"

"Anyhow," said Alexis, sitting next to Atticus, "ignore them. What did you do?"

"It was about…I don't know, maybe two weeks ago I suppose," Aster began, "I moved from my old place to one of those new estates off by the corner of Domino. Really secluded area. Anyhow, I was coming down the stairs when the movers were…well…moving stuff in, and I fell down the stairs. There's no carpet on the stairs, or on the hall floor, so that hurt – really bad."

"Are you alright?" asked Jaden.

"Yea, had to get the gash on my head cleaned up, and I broke my foot in two places. Other than that, I'm fine."

"Doesn't that hurt your dueling, being injured?" Atticus leaned forward. The assembly still hadn't begun and the teachers were still talking in the front of the room.

"Well, Sartorius said that the doctor said I'm not allowed to duel 'till the cast comes off and the crutches go, so the only monotones-free thing I have left to do is to hang around here."

"You're actually going to attend classes and stuff like that?" asked Syrus, "but you already know all of this stuff!"

"Yea, well, I also get to crash in Shepard's office and use his big screen TV. He said so."

"Wow…"

"May I have your attention please?" asked Shepard, stepping up to the podium. The chatter amongst the students died instantly.

"I'd like to welcome you back to another eventful and exciting new year. I'm sure some of you are eagerly awaiting that graduation match so you can move on to the Pro Leagues, while others have another year to go before the farewell match.

"This year, Duel Academy will be hosting four new students – one from each of our sister schools around the world. They will enter the third year class. Please welcome them and treat them, as you would want them to treat you. Let's not be someone who makes fun of others because…they get lower grades or have ridiculous neon hair or something silly like that." Everyone then looked at Chazz.

"What!?"

Shepard cleared his throat once more. "From East Academy, please welcome Adrian Gecko!" A tall, muscular boy with spiky reddish hair entered the auditorium through a door behind the podium. He gave a small wave to the students, as the Chancellor continued, "next is Jim Cook from South Academy."

Jim had a somewhat of a cowboy look to him, with a crocodile on his back. A few students snickered.

"Look, he's dressed like someone from the western United States in the 1800s."

"What's with the crocodile? Or is that an alligator?"

"From the West, here is Axel Brodie!" Axel took his spot next to Jim. He had a look etched across his face saying _don't cross me_.

"Finally, from North Academy, Jesse Anderson!"

There was a pause, but no one joined the other three students.

"Jesse Anderson," the Chancellor repeated, "are you here?"

"He was on the boat with us, right?" Adrian whispered to Jim.

"I saw him in the halls earlier. Must've gotten himself lost."

The doors at the back of the hall opened and a boy with blue-green hair ran down toward the podium.

"Are you Jesse?" asked Shepard.

The boy nodded, "Yea. I'm Jesse. Sorry I'm late and all. North Academy is a lot smaller than here. I must have lost my way a dozen times!"

He took his place as Shepard continued, "also this year, one of the top professors of West Academy will join us. He has raised the most grades at that school than any other teacher. It is our goal that he will also boost some of the falling grades here as well. Please give a warm and respectful welcome to Professor Viper!"

Professor Viper was a tall, muscular man with a very stern look. He had "Tristan (original YuGiOh)" hair and seemed to be glaring out at everyone. He stepped to the podium and spoke into the microphone. "Thank you Chancellor. Now I'm going to make this brief before you all start goofing off in your seats up there. To pick up the slacking grades in this school, I'm beginning a series of tests. First, every student will be fitted for a bio-band. These bio-bands will measure your dueling spirit, fighting ability, among other things. I will be monitoring your duels. You will have to duel at least once with the bio-band. If you lose more than you win, and your games were not even close…meaning you're not dueling to your potential, say good-bye to Duel Academy. This weeds out the weak. If you don't duel with the bands, you will be expelled…"

"I've heard of this guy, Viper," said Aster, as Shepard continued about a homework club, "he raised West Academy's overall grades by twenty percent!"

"Wow, just think. Slacker and Shorty might actually get an A in something…"

"Watch it Chazz or else!"

"Or else what Syrus?"

"Or else…umm…I'll think of something…"

* * *

Later that morning, Jaden and Jesse were in one of the school courtyards.

"So you have a Winged Kuriboh duel spirit, Jaden? That's pretty cool!"

"Thanks, Jesse. You can see them?"

"Yep. I've got one too. This is Ruby. Ruby Carbuckle (anyone know the correct spelling?) and she's my spirit."

"That's sweet!"

"Jay!" Syrus ran up to them, "oh, hi Jesse. We have to get fitted for our bands now. If you ask me, this whole thing is bad news! Who ever head of a nice guy with Viper as a name!"

"Oh, he can't be all bad! C'mon. Let's go get our bands," said Jesse.

"Okay," Syrus followed his two friends, "you're probably right Jesse. I guess I'm overreacting." _But even if he is good, I still have a bad feeling about this…_

* * *

Well, that's pretty much it for now. Leave your questions, comments, complaints, and flames and stuff with the purple button. If anyone know how to spell Ruby's full name, please let me know and I'll fix it. Also, any obsessive fangirl in this story is a worthless nothing character. Not based off of anyone and has no major part in this story. 


	2. Chapter 2

Hello people! Thanks for the reviews so far – I may not have mentioned this at the start of chapter 1, but this story is a bit Aster – centered. Just so you know…. Also, very unlike any other story I have written, except _Tom Riddle's Item_, this story is mapped so far at 28 chapters. Long, I know, and that's not even the last one! What will probably happen is that a shorter chapter will be added to the next one, making one longer chapter, thus decreasing the number, but so far, the chapter count has at least reached 28.

Also, on another note - THERE IS NO 'YUBEL'. Viper has reasons for the things he does, none of which include a creepy arm...

* * *

I am also thinking of breaking this story into two parts. Which is weird, since I never map out these stories ahead. The first part would be the first 25 chapters, but I am unsure whether or not to keep the story as one big one, as one big one split into two parts, or have the second part as entire new fanfiction! Send your thoughts to me; I'd like to know what you think!

As it turns out, I was trying to stray from using original characters in this story. Well, so much for that one. The main OC is the villain, and the others aren't extremely important – important enough to keep the story flowing. They don't become Jaden's newest groupies or anything like that. The bios for these OCs are on my profile page. As the fanfic develops, so will the information on my profile.

Like before, I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX. It belongs to…well, you know. Kazuki Takahashi…. I DO own my plot line and any wacked out, original character that appears for a maximum of ten seconds (unless they aren't fangirls, then they may last more, but not by much).

* * *

Chapter 2

The line to be fitted for the dueling bands stretched down the hall from the nurse's office to the Chancellor's office on the other side of the building. From Slifers to Obelisks, each student waited for their chance to get one of the shiny bracelets.

When the clock struck nine, Ms. Fontaine opened the doors to the infirmary and admitted the young duelists inside.

"Line up here, please," called the nurse from her desk. Professor Viper stood in the corner, watching his students accept their bracelets and put them on. _This setup will allow me to have everything I need_, he thought, _soon, I will have collected enough energy to complete my task…_

Soon, it came down to Jaden and his group of friends. While he and Jesse eagerly took their bio-bands, Syrus was a bit more nervous.

"What's wrong, Sy?" asked Jaden, putting his band on.

"This just doesn't seem right! Since when does someone come into Duel Academy and start making rules like he was the Chancellor?"

"Sartorius sort of did that last year," said Aster, "took some students, made them into Society slugs, then pretty much took over an entire dorm and a half!"

"Good point…but still! You would think Crowler or Shepard would have put a stop to it!"

"They might, but then again, this was the method that boosted West Academy's grades!" Jesse explained, "It'd be kind of pointless to do away with it. Besides, it's not like these bio-bands are deadly or anything."

"I would hope not," said Chazz, "I have my whole life ahead of me!"

"Can't be anything interesting," sniggered Hassleberry, "all you ever do is complain!"

"Watch it, Sludge-head!"

"Who you callin' Sludgehead?"

"You, that's who!"

"That's enough!" said a voice from behind. Both Chazz and Hassleberry turned. Adrian was right behind them, "although your fighting is real amusing, you're holding up the line!"

"Oh. My bad," Hassleberry moved to the side.

* * *

The jingle of keys echoed around the hall as the security guard turned the said item into the cell lock. The occupant inside the cell made no acknowledgement that the guard was there. He continued to stare at the _ProLeague _magazine next to his cot. On the front cover showed a high-ranking duelist in mid-draw. The prisoner continued to stare at the face plastered on the cover, without turning a page, or blinking. The guard tossed another magazine into the middle of the cell.

"Something new for you, Turama," said the guard. He relocked the cell and continued his run down the hall, checking every cell to make sure every prisoner was still in confinement.

The man called Turama finally adverted his gaze from the issue next to him and retrieved the new periodical the guard had left him. He was given another issue of _ProLeague_, this one with Aster Phoenix after his victory against a random duelist. The headline under his face in big block letters said, "**NEW KING OF THE PRO LEAGUES CROWNED. See page 6 for full story and exclusive interview!**"

_Phoenix…_he thought, turning to the cover story. He began to read…

_A New King Reigns the Pro Leagues _

_After last night's big match, a new champion was crowned King of the Leagues. Aster Phoenix defeated Maxwell Simmons in a heated match to win the title formerly held by Kyle Jables, known as his stage name, "The D". In an unfortunate event, Jables went missing after his boat caught fire while at sea. Aster Phoenix, Jables' adopted son, was the only 'survivor'. Three months later, Jables, still missing, was assumed dead. Since then, no one has held the title. Industrial Illusions and Kaiba Corporations, the two sponsor industries for the Leagues, refused to easily give away the title to Phoenix, who is next in line for the title anyways. _

_"We want Aster-boy to earn the title with a well-earned duel. No freebies this time," said Maximillion Pegasus, from Industrial Illusions, "otherwise, what fun would that be?" During last night's duel, the Kaiba Dome was packed. According to ticket sales, there were no extra seats in the Kaiba Dome. By the time the duel had ended, Aster Phoenix had reigned over Maxwell Simmons with 100 life points to spare. According to a quick interview with Phoenix before he claimed his title, he told us the last time his points dropped so low was when he dueled Thorn Turama, when Turama was heading to the top spot. That duel ended with a victory for Phoenix and began a long losing streak for Turama. _

_Upon his win, Phoenix was given the award for the 'Longest Winning Streak' since the Leagues began. His streak surpasses Jables' fifteen game stretch by four, bringing the new record up to nineteen games, and still counting. _

_The seventeen year-old was also awarded the "Pro League Champion" medal by Pegasus, and "King of the Leagues" by Kaiba Corporation after his defeat of Simmons raised his winning total to fifty-seven games, surpassing Jables' record by one. Jables, if you recall, lost in the middle of his career to the late Thane Bent, giving Bent the Champion title before Jables won it back in a following tournament. Jables continued to hold growing records and dueling titles until his death. _

_In an after-interview with Phoenix, we were able to ask him a few questions about his victory and winnings. _

_PL: How did you feel after the match? _

_AP: How did I feel? Of course, I was ecstatic. It was always my goal to pass 'D' in victories, so that's one goal down. The titles really come along for the ride. _

_PL: So, you don't really want the medals? _

_AP: Didn't say that! _

_PL: (laughs at comment) Ok, Aster. Do you feel you can make a new record setting that no one can break? _

_AP: I'm not really sure. 'D' thought his ranks were set in stone, but, since I broke some, I feel I can do some more. I'm not sure if I'll break all of them, but there will always be some superstar to make his or her own standards. You never know…maybe someone will break Yugi or Kaiba's record. _

_PL: I see. You've already won the 'King of the Leagues', 'Longest Winning Streak' and 'Pro League Champ.' Do you think you'll win any more gifts tonight? _

_AP: Not to sound greedy …'cause I'm not… but who doesn't like receiving hard-earned presents! It would be amazing to win a bunch, but I'm hoping Sartorius earns 'Manager of the Year' award. He deserves it, I think. _

_PL: I didn't think there was an award for 'Manager of the Year'! _

_AP: (Aster then stares at us with a hilarious look upon his face) You're a magazine dedicated to the Pro Leagues and you didn't know that? That's funny! _

_PL: Ha, ha! Anyway, was it difficult dueling while on crutches? _

_AP: Yes, actually. I didn't think I would be allowed to duel, since I've been hurt, but apparently Sartorius talked them into it, or something like that. They had to turn the safety on my duel-disk up all the way, so if I got blasted for about 3500 points, I wouldn't re-break the bones in my foot in the blast, but they left Simmons' alone. _

_PL: I see. Is there anything you'd like to say before we chase down Simmons for his recount of his defeat?_

_AP: Uh, I guess really that all of my great dueling-ness wouldn't be possible without 'D' or Sartorius. They taught me the game, and had I never met either one, I wouldn't be the…uh…_

_PL: Showstopper?_

_AP: Yea, I guess that fits – I wouldn't be the 'showstopper' I am today! Thanks Sartorius! _

_PL: Going to thank Jables too?_

_AP: …Uh, yea, him too…_

_The other winners were Ameline Burnari for 'Manager of the Year' and Katie Bish for 'Best Record Turnaround'… _

Turama put down the paper. _Katie Bish…I remember you…_he thought, _you ended my pain and suffering, you made me leave my love. I'll get my time…and you'll be sorry you crossed paths with me…_Turama then rescanned the article, looking at the other names. _Phoenix…you started it…and I'll end it…_

The door clanged again, and this time, the guard stayed put, "Dinner, Turama. Bring your things – you're moving to a new ward for mentally ill prisoners."

Turama picked up his few magazines and glared at the guard, "I'm not crazy," he snapped, "there's no reason for me to go there!"

"The other inmates are complaining about you. You talk loudly in your sleep, mentioning people's names over and over. We just don't want to you do something stupid."

"I'm in jail. What could I possibly do?"

"You got in here with a pretty hefty charge…"

"Hey, I'm innocent! I didn't rape her, or kill her! I never even heard of the girl!"

"Evidence said otherwise. You also tried to attack Pro manager Sartorius after he refused to let you see Aster Phoenix after he beat you in a duel. Right?"

"…That was different," he muttered, trudging down the hall, "I lost unfairly. I wanted a rematch. Why didn't the guy book me with Phoenix again?"

"You're going to have to get over it, that was two years ago!"

"I'll never forget…"

"See? That's why you have to be treated. You're a danger to yourself, always thinking of revenge, and payback. You need help!"

Turama said nothing. Halfway down the next corridor, a loud siren went off. The prison went into complete pandemonium. The guard reached for his gun when something flashed before his eyes and all went black…

* * *

"Oh man! I can't wait to get my game on! This year is going to be so sweet, that it's going to be sweet!"

"Jaden, I don't think that makes any sense at all," laughed Alexis.

"I know it didn't, and that's what made it sweet!"

"Slacker…you are weird…" Chazz snickered.

"Am not!"

"You are too! You couldn't win a war with a bed sheet for crying out loud!"

"Yea I did!"

Lost two out three. Counts as a loss in my book…"

"You serious?" asked Jesse, "you lost to a sheet, Jay?"

"According to Mr. I-have-no-sense-of-humor, I guess I did," said Jaden, pouting.

"Oh, there you are, Jesse," said a voice from behind him.

Jesse turned, "oh, hi Jim, Adrian. Finding your way around here all right? I hope you're not following my example and are getting lost all the time!"

"Definitely not," laughed Adrian, "I'm finding my way pretty well."

"Same with me, though some o' the blokes are kind of nervous around me, though I dunno why…" said Jim.

"Uh, does the crocodile on your back give enough explanation?" asked Syrus.

"You mean Shirley? Nah – she's harmless!"

"The croc is harmless?"

"Yea, a real sweetie. Wouldn't hurt anyone, unless provoked, of course. But still…"

"Doesn't…doesn't Shirley get heavy?"

"Not really."

Then Hassleberry ran up to them, "Guys! Chancellor Sheppard has an announcement to make in the auditorium! I've been looking all over for you soldiers!"

"I guess we should go then," said Jaden, getting up from his sprawled position on the grass.

The auditorium was packed. Well, the fangirls were packed around Aster's seat with permanent markers begging to sign his cast, but other than that, the room was getting fuller as students continued to enter.

"Settle down students! I have some news to share that affects all of us in some way," announced Sheppard from the podium.

Jaden and company squeezed behind a row of Sharpie (I don't own the marker company!) wielding fangirls and took their seats.

Aster put his crutches at the empty seat next to him and sighed; turning to face Chazz, "want my fangirls now?"

"No thanks," Chazz snickered, "I wouldn't want their Sharpies blemishing my Chazzerific skin all the time."

Aster shook his head, "only a week until the crutches come off, only a week," he said over and over to no one in particular.

Chancellor Sheppard cleared his throat for the third time this one silenced the audience. "I have some announcements to make, all concerning the world of dueling. First off, I would like to congratulate Aster Phoenix for his win against Maxwell Simmons last night, earning him the title of 'King of the Leagues'. As he is undefeated in the Leagues, such an honor at a young age is amazing. He also broke several dueling records, set by Kyle Jables, the former Pro League Champion! Congrads, Aster!"

An amount of applause rang through the room. Several fangirls turned and batted their eyelashes at him.

"Hey guys– how come you guys never have fans, and I have to have them all?"

"Must be because you're rich, famous, and to them are hotter than any other teenage celebrity," Atticus chuckled.

Aster put his head on the back of the seat in front of him, "Lucky me," he muttered.

"Also, there was a security scare at the Tokyo Prison in the mentally insane ward, where several 'duelist' inmates were kept. There was a breakout. Police aren't releasing anything yet, because there is the chance that the missing prisoners are still in the complex. We will be told of the situation as soon as we can.

"Also, some of you may recall the five hour duel between Katie Bish and Thorn Turama, where the duel was at a standoff because of a power failure at the Kaiba Dome last year. Well, it seems Ms. Bish has vanished after receiving her award last night at the Dome. She hasn't been seen since, and there is a search team looking for her. If you are closely related or know her very well, and you feel you can aid the police investigation, please come to my office. Thank you."

Chancellor Sheppard left the auditorium as the school filed out.

Syrus led everyone back to 'their' spot under the large tree in the courtyards between the Obelisk Blue and Ra Yellow dorms.

"What do you know about Katie Bish, Aster? Have you dueled her?" asked Adrian.

"She's a good duelist. Ranked fifth in the last tournament before losing to Brock Fens. Her most famous duel was the one against Turama, when the power failed. Everyone was stranded in the Duel Dome until power came back on so the match could continue. She's real nice too, and she has a lot of connections."

"Why would anyone want her?" asked Alexis, "could someone be after her for money?"

"It's a possibility – but if I wanted to get money from a Pro, I'd go for someone with more than her. She's a big shopper. In the mall every weekend."

"You would think that someone would have seen her taken, if she was leaving the Duel Dome," said Jim, letting Shirley off his back. The crocodile curled under the shade of the tree.

"Well, someone could also be after her personally," said Jesse, "there's a lot of weirdoes in the world. Lots and lots of weirdoes..."

"True…"

"A couple of years ago," began Aster, "there was this crazy group where they would kidnap top-ranking duelists, kill the duelist, and keep their decks in hope of obtaining all of the powerful cards in the world."

"What happened to them?" asked Syrus, "are they still around?"

"Nah, the police found them before they could get rid of the first victim – the idiots had all of their plans written out and stuck on the wall. They all went to jail…and…" Aster trailed off.

"And what?" asked Jaden, pulling a blade of grass from the ground.

"Well, they all were sent to Tokyo Prison…and there was some sort of disturbance there earlier...it might be a possibility that one escaped and went after Katie."

"You think so?"

Aster thought for a moment, "she really doesn't have any super-special-one-of-a-kind cards, but plays a Rock type deck really well. Other than that, she's not that special to a kidnapper – unless the kidnapper isn't dueling related."

"Wouldn't you worry if someone came for you?" asked Hassleberry, "I mean, you're a dueling machine, got tons of money, _and _one-of-a-kind cards."

"Yea, but so far, there was a disturbance at a prison, and someone disappeared who just _happened_ to be a duelist. If I were in real danger, Sartorius would have the entire police force tailing me. Not to mention the attacker would have to get through him first…"

"But since the Light of Destruction was destroyed…" Chazz began.

"It was destroyed, but part of it still lives in Sartorius – just not enough to take him over again. He still has some of his powers from before that are pretty neat…"

Jaden made a big, goofy grin, "you mean he can make light energy thingies come from his hands and summon things with them?"

"Yea, it freaked me out when he asked for the TV remote, held out his hand, and the thing went right into it. He can also use his tarot cards to predict future events, just not as clearly as before."

"Wow," said Jaden, "you really don't have much to worry about, do you?"

"I don't think so – oh wait, I do…"

"You do, Aster?" Alexis was confused, "who?"

"Fangirls…they better keep those Sharpies away from me…"

Professor Viper's voice then rang through the school, "Would Jesse Anderson and Jaden Yugi report to the dueling arena. We are starting our 'Survival Matches' in one hour."

* * *

Well, there's chapter 2! Leave all of your questions, comments, complaints, blackmail, and praise/flames with the purple button below. IF you chose to flame, there BETTER be some way to improve my writing, because 'this fanfiction sucks' doesn't really say much. But if that's how you want to say something, go ahead. I won't flame back in retaliation, I think that's wrong…

Happy Halloween readers! (Throws 3 Musketeers (which I don't own) to the readers)


	3. Chapter 3

Hey everyone! I hope everyone had a happy Turkey-Day and are gleefully waiting the winter holidays. As for me, I'm cranking out chapters for three fanfics, though I'm trying to get these up ASAP.

Since the first part of my story semi-follows the anime storyline, I'm not including the entire duels that have aired on TV (the Jaden vs Jesse exhibition match for example, my story has the exact duel). It takes way too long, because I have to watch the episode repeatedly, and be able to get all of the card information, and sadly, I don't have the time. So instead, I'll just have the ends of the duels, and onward with the chapter stuff.

I don't own YuGiOh GX, and if you read GX fanfictions, I would think you know who does…

* * *

Chapter 3 

(Like I said, if you read the Author's note, you'll realize this is not the beginning of the duel, but the end. As long as the duel aired on TV, I won't type out the whole thing)

"Now Neos and Air Hummingbird, merge to form Elemental Hero Air Neos!" Jaden's monster appeared on the field in a dazzle of light. "Now, because my life points are lower than yours, Jesse, my monster gains an extra 1200 points!"

Jesse watched in awe as Air Neos's stats began climbing, ending at 3700.

"So it's game over! Neos, attack!"

"Sorry to interrupt," said Jesse, "but its time! That monster you were so hopeful to see…"

"Oh, yea!"

"Jesse's going to summon his dragon!" exclaimed Syrus, from his seat in the stands.

"Gee, what gave it away?" Aster smirked, "the dramatic pause or his reference to it through the entire duel?" Syrus laughed.

"All seven Crystal Beasts are here, so there's only one thing to do," the North Academy student said, "I play Rainbow Dragon!"

The seven beasts on Jesse's field flew into the sky in a rainbow of color. "Meet the most feared creature in history! You'll never survive!"

There was an awkward pause as everyone stared at the monsters in the air.

"Just kiddin'!"

"What!?"

Jaden's attack continued into Jesse, knocking his life points down to zero.

"What happened to Rainbow Dragon?" asked Jaden.

"Well that's the funny thing! It hasn't been created yet! You see, there's a stone tablet with the Rainbow Dragon on it, but nobody's ever found it!"

"Oh wow…good game, Jaden," said Jesse, as the two duelists shook hands. Syrus saw their bio-bands light up, but apparently not Jaden nor Jesse, nor the rest of the room noticed.

Professor Viper moved to the two duelists who were currently smiling and laughing together.

"Very good! A fitting start to the new semester! This is only a sample of your duels. As my reading picked up, and I'm sure you all saw for yourselves, these two show remarkable spirit and energy. You all will duel at least once per day, and my bio-bands will alert me if you are eluding your duels. Should you choose not to duel on a given day, you must duel twice the next, or to the amount of the days you refused to play plus the daily requirement. Should you not have the dueling energy and spirit to back your hopeful dueling careers, you'll be expelled!"

"He's scaring the students!" cried Crowler.

Bonaparte nodded, "And that's our job!"

Professor Viper continued, "As eager some of you are to duel…the 'survival duels' as I prefer to call them, won't start until tomorrow. While I was able to record the duel today, I will need to set up the rest of my duel recording equipment so I can record all of your duels. I can only monitor a few at a time. So rest up, and prepare to fight tomorrow."

* * *

One week later… 

Sartorius moved into the living room of his house and flicked on the evening news. A cup of tea in his hand, he flipped through the channels to the _News at Nine_. While the anchorman spoke of the usual headlines, a banner across the bottom of the screen began to form, a headline and limited information flashing along the screen.

_What's this?_ Sartorius said to himself. As he read the news flash, the anchorman stopped his talk of a celebrity divorce.

"We have this special update on the Tokyo Prison scare. It seems there _was_ a breakout. While we are receiving more information, we will return…after the weather…"

Sartorius finished watching the story and turned off the television. Grabbing his coat, he headed out to the car.

"Where to?" his driver opened the door for him.

"Kaiba Corp. I need to get to Duel Academy immediately."

"Yes, sir."

_This is not good. With those men on the loose, we may all be in danger…_

* * *

"Uh, guys…you really didn't have to. I'm not a big fan of parties." 

"We know, Aster, but there's no reason not to celebrate your last victory!"

"Uh huh, but…"

"You set history records!"

"Records are made to be broken, Jaden. Who knows, you could break them!"

Jaden laughed, "You really think so?"

"Hey, anything's possible, right?"

The party was in the 'Special Event' room of the Obelisk Hall. Atticus had the big screen TV set to professional dueling, and Jesse and Jim had brought the food from the Obelisk cafeteria. Jaden wanted to go with them, but there wouldn't have been anything to bring back.

"Ease on the chips, Sarge, that's our third bag we've gone through already and we picked up the food half an hour ago!"

"I know, but they're so addicting!"

"Why didn't you guys wait till after the weekend to throw a party for me?" asked Aster, plopping down on a couch, "then I wouldn't have to deal with these crutches anymore…these things are a pain in the –"

"Ah, the duel's boring," sighed Atticus, as he turned off the TV.

"Did you do any other celebrating since your victory?"

"Uh, no. I just said, I'm not a party person."

"Why?"

"You wouldn't be either if every event you went to had the paparazzi tailing your every move just waiting for you to humiliate yourself so they can tell the world that you just did something moronic like choke on a pretzel…"

"You choked on a pretzel in public?"

"No…I'm just saying…"

"But I thought you liked the press!" exclaimed Jaden.

Aster cocked an eyebrow, "every duelist has a 'press face'. It's our way of saying we don't-like-humiliating-one's-defeat-but-we'll-do-it-anyway-because-the-public-likes-rude-and-selfcentered-celebrities. I know a lot of Pros and we agree that we don't like to humiliate anyone, but we do it because the public wants it. And when we don't talk in that tone, the press rewords everything we say to make it seem that way."

Jaden stared for a moment, "Oh."

"Does Zane do that too?" asked Syrus, "put on a false image for the press?"

"He might," Aster thought about it, "but I doubt it, Zane loves power and victory now. He'd probably be thrilled to humiliate someone he defeated."

"There you are," said Adrian, coming into the room, "I've been looking all over for you guys."

"You have?" asked Alexis, "why?"

"Chazz wanted me to tell you – Sartorius is here and he's in the Chancellor's office with Professor Viper."

"Really? What's Sartorius doing here?"

"So where's Chazz?"

"He's outside the Chancellor's office, or at least he was. But it seemed they were arguing over something…"

Jaden put on a crazy grin, "This'll be sweet! Let's go eavesdrop and see what's up!"

"I'm with you, Jay!"

"Let's go, Syrus!" The two best friends ran from the room. Hassleberry then ran after.

"Hey, Sarge! Don't forget your number one friend!"

"Jaden's my wingman!"

The argument between the two echoed throughout Obelisk Blue. Aster sighed, grabbed his crutches, and got up, making his way to the door, "Well, right now, there's nothing better to do than go follow. Anyone coming with?"

"Count me in," said Alexis, "If we don't go now, we'll hear it from Jaden sooner or later. Might as well get all the facts straight now before he forgets half of them."

"I take it this Sartorius bloke is your manager?" asked Jim. Aster nodded. "I'm in."

* * *

Everyone from Aster's party met Chazz outside the door. 

"What's going on in there Chazz?" asked Jaden.

"Professor Viper and Sartorius are shouting at each other. They just started a few minutes ago, so you didn't miss a thing."

The doors to Chancellor Sheppard's office whooshed open and Sartorius stood in the doorway.

"I thought I heard you out here."

"You did?"

"Well, no, but the limited powers still in me have warned that there would be eavesdroppers…and look who's camped outside the door? Jaden and his bundle of friends."

"What are you doing here, Sartorius?" asked Aster, "I thought you were home planning my next tour."

"Well, I was…did you see the news tonight?"

"No, I was having a…uh…the gang threw me a party for my victory over Maxwell Simmons and for all the shiny medals I got."

"I see. Well, since you're going to end up hearing the entire conversation one way or another, you might as well come in. I doubt the Chancellor will mind, since you eavesdrop on him as a daily activity." Sartorius left the door open as the gang piled inside.

Professor Viper peered at the group and then glared, "What's this?"

"They were going to hear what's going on from Aster anyhow, so they might as well hear the whole story now."

Aster blinked, "This is about me?"

Sartorius turned and fixed his gaze on his star duelist, "Yes. Based on the most recent turn of events, I want to make sure you're well protected…should something happen to you…"

"Like what? He is perfectly safe here at Duel Academy," said Viper, "and as a student here, he will participate in the daily activities. There is no reason why he should be in any danger."

Sartorius glared at the professor, "before I start on the whole danger part, Aster is only here at Duel Academy because of his recent injury. Within five days, he will be back in the Pro Circuit. I don't see the point of putting him through a survival duel, since he's already a Pro."

"I am testing the duelist in everyone at this school. Aster, no matter how good of a professional he is, resides at Duel Academy, and will be treated as a student."

"You're going to make him duel through an injury? Are you mad?"

"If I recall, Mr. Sartorius, didn't you do that?"

"That was different. Should Aster not have dueled Simmons, he would have to wait for the next tournament to start, and then win it to gain a title that belonged to him since Kyle Jables dropped off the face of the Earth."

"So he turns on the safety protocols on his duel disk. Big deal."

"So you're going to make him stay through these duels, even though he won't be at this school to complete the next week's worth of classes?"

"Until Thursday, which is a week from now, he will continue to participate in the survival duels, and that is final. Until he gets off campus, he follows my guidelines."

"Excuse me, Gentlemen," said Sheppard, and everyone jumped. He had been so silent through the conversation that Jaden had forgotten he was even there. "I think the decision to participate, or not to participate, rests on Aster's decision. It is, of course, his dueling that is the focal point here. Aster, you decide. You're only going to be here for another week at the most. Do you want to participate in the survival duels, or not?"

"Sartorius," Aster began, and Sartorius and Viper slowly turned to look at him, "I don't have a problem with these survival duels. It eases the longing of something to do while I sit around and do practically nothing."

"Then it's settled then," said Viper. He turned to leave the Chancellor's office.

"Is that all, Sartorius?" asked Sheppard.

"No, and this directly concerns you, Aster, and probably any duelist. You said you haven't seen the evening news, correct?"

"Yea, why? What's up, Sartorius?"

"Remember the disturbance at Tokyo Prison?"

"Uh huh…what's this all about, anyway?"

Sartorius sighed, "There was a large breakout. The police have formulated a list of missing convicts, and some of the names you might find familiar." He pulled from his pocket a list of names printed from the Internet and handed them to Aster, who was currently seated in a chair by Sheppard's desk.

There was an awkward pause as Aster peered through the list, and frowned at a couple of names.

"What is it, Aster?" asked Alexis.

"Some of these guys are nobodies. Well, nobodies to me, anyhow. A few charged with the simplest crimes from attempted robbery to some of the major, such as kidnapping, rape, and murder. A few mentally insane…and…" he trailed off.

"Who?" asked Atticus. He got up from his seat next to his sister and stood behind Aster, peering over his shoulder.

"Remember those guys I told you about? Who would…or at least they tried to…kill a duelist and steal their one-of-a-kind cards?"

Syrus nodded, "I remember you telling us about that!"

"Did they escape?" asked Jesse.

"All of them."

"_All of them_!!" cried Jim, "Crikey! How many were there?!"

"Ten."

"Ten?" Chazz repeated, "Were they the only other ones on the list?"

"No," said Aster, shaking his head, "then there's the nobodies, and…"

"Now who?"

"Thorn Turama. He escaped."

"Who's he?"

"He's the guy I beat a while ago. Had he had beaten me; he would have gone on to face The D for the championship title. But he lost, and it sent him on a long losing streak that eventually ended his dueling career. His manager quit on him and he lost his other sponsorship deals from other losses.

"He went low for a while, but then he was out-of-the-blue charged with the raping of a teenage girl and sent to prison. I don't think he did it, but the courts found him mentally insane, so he's back and forth between regular prison and a mental prison. Personally, I'd keep him in the mental ward…"

"That's not all, Aster," said Sartorius, "Katie Bish was found."

"Where is she?" asked Adrian.

"She's dead."

Everyone stared at Sartorius, trying hard to not believe those two words. Chancellor Sheppard looked down at his desk, not saying a word. There was another awkward silence in the room before Alexis broke it, "What happened to her?"

"She was found, in an abandoned tool shed on the Domino outskirts with her Duel-disk on, shot to death in the head, arm, chest, leg, and side. Her deck was missing, and there were bruise marks on her arms."

"Wow," said Hassleberry, "that's horrible!"

"There was also a note next to her on the floor where she was found, written in blood, it stated, '_She was the first'._ I don't know how many other victims there will be, but I want to make sure, Aster, that you are safe."

"Well, I don't think…" Aster began, but then stopped speaking, thought for a moment, then nodded, "Fine."

"Why the sudden change in mind?" asked Jaden.

Aster turned to the Australian duelist, "there just _happens _to be a coincidence between the note, Bish's death and the escape of Turama."

"There is?" asked Syrus, "What is it?"

"Unless you were really into the Pro Circuit a while back, you wouldn't know, or remember. But since D and I have been in for a while, I kind of have a clue.

"When Turama went down his path of defeats, he would always swear after his loss that he would get back at us one day."

"Us?" asked Jaden.

"Us being the victors. After his first one, against me, Thorn came down to Sartorius and me as we were leaving and demanded a rematch. Sartorius refused, as I was due in America for a mini-tour and didn't have the time for one right then and there. Turama got mad and attacked Sartorius. It wasn't anything extraordinary, just one flying fist. He was restrained and taken out of the Duel Dome. His last duel before dropping out of the leagues was against Katie Bish."

"Who did he duel before her?" asked Chazz, "shouldn't that person be afraid right about now?"

"Maxwell Simmons dueled Thorn Turama a week before Turama's match against Katie Bish."

"Someone should warn him then!"

"It's too late for that," said Sartorius, shaking his head, "He disappeared this morning."

* * *

While the police surrounded the area where the murdered duelist was found, on the other side of the city, a car pulled up behind an abandoned warehouse. The darkness of the night shielded the car from any onlooker. 

Five men came out of the car, and proceeded into the back of the facility.

Inside, the warehouse was cobweb and dust filled. It appeared untouched for years. The men filed to a back room and closed the door, fastening the bolt. Going to the bookcase, one of the men tipped back a book to reveal a button. Pushing it, the bookcase turned to a forty-five degree angle, allowing the men to continue into the hidden passage.

Inside the hidden hall, a set of stairs lead down, while the hall continued straight. The men continued down the stairs, and entered a room to the right.

It appeared to be a control room of some sort. One man was in the room, at a wall with a computer attached. The monitor was on, showing another room in the building. The room on the screen seemed to be a tank, one filling with water.

The man at the computer turned, "I see you have returned. I take you weren't spotted at all?"

"Not a chance. We dumped her like you said and left the note."

"Good, good."

"If I may ask," asked another man, besides the one who opened the bookcase, "what are you filling up?"

"Hmm? Oh, want to take a look, guys?"

The five men from the car nodded. They followed the other man out of the room. His jacket had a name printed on the back. Turama.

They followed Turama back up the stairs and into a different chamber.

From the doorway of this room, the only place to walk from this level was a strip of floor going to the other side. A set of stairs from the other end went down to a lower level where there was more room to walk. Water was slowly, and still rising from openings in the floor.

"The water has reached a level of three feet since I started it up," Thorn explained, "but by the time the flow reaches a foot below the lower level down there, it will have reached twenty."

"Uh, why are you filling up the tank?"

"This, is where I'm going to stage the greatest fall of a Pro Duelist…literally."

Turama sighed upon seeing the confused faces of the men.

"Uh, can you elaborate on that a bit?"

Turama smirked, "of course. The hook up there," he pointed to the metal hook, "it's attached to a hidden crane. We will attach someone to the hooked crane, and at a certain time, let him go into the pool below, where he'll drown."

"How do you know he'll drown?"

"Usually, when you're stuck to a fifty pound weight, you don't make it to the surface twenty feet above you…"

"Oh."

"Wouldn't it be easier to shoot the guy?"

"I don't plan to re-use my revenging methods. I plan keep any connection between the victims and me as slim as possible. Reusing the same methods might give them a lead…somehow…"

"Oooh."

"So, is Simmons going on this thing?" one of the henchmen indicated the setup.

"No, no," said Turama, "I'm saving this for the one who sent me spiraling down my path. It was _his_ fault I lost all those twelve duels after that!"

"So we're going to kill twelve people?"

"As fun as it would be, I'd rather not. The police would figure it was me too quickly. I'm only going to pick a select few. The more important ones."

"Oh, ok."

"Katie Bish had ended my streak, as I was kicked from the leagues only an hour after the defeat. Maxwell Simmons defeated me humiliatingly, and the same happened two other times. I will get them as well. But I am saving this trap – for the best. And I save the best for last…"

"Oh, so who's going to go last?"

"He was just in ProLeague Magazine recently, as a matter of fact. Our _beloved_, newly crowned King of the Pro Circuit – Aster Phoenix."

* * *

Dun dunn dunnnn! 

I hope I didn't confuse you with the last part. I didn't give the henchmen names yet, as they're rarely important, but you'll probably hate me with the ending like that…

I would love to know what you think! The purple button _craves_ attention, especially from happy readers like you! Also, I did my best to edit this chapter. If you found anything that makes no sense, alert me to it immediately and I'll gladly fix.

Happy Holidays!


	4. Chapter 4

Hey guys! Chapter 4 is here. Consider this your holiday gift! For those curious for the times of the next updates, I keep deadline dates on my profile beside all of my fanfiction info. All of that info is found under my large wad of favorites.

On another note, I have a poll on my profile asking which of my fanfics you find to be your favorite. Should one story have a large favored majority over the others, an update may come sooner than you think! (EXCEPT for _Tom Riddle's Item_, that fanfic is complete, and votes for that one do NOT count toward its sequel).

If I used a card wrongly, please let me know ASAP. I don't have my stash of cards in front of me and I'm going by memory.

I want to wish you all the best this holiday season and have a great New Year! See ya in 2008!

* * *

Chapter 4 

"Two turns are up," said Zane, "which allows me to take the card from _Different Dimension Capsule_ and place it in my hand, not that it matters, because I'm going to use it!"

"Zane's got this duel in the bag, folks!" said the announcer, "for his eighth game in a row, this powerhouse has gone undefeated, and by the looks, he's not about to lose!"

"Big deal!" smirked Zane's opponent, "you won't defeat my line of high powered warriors!"

"You may want to rethink that," snapped Zane, "I play _Overload Fusion_! Now by fusing _Cyber Dragon_ with three other machine-type monsters, I can summon _Chimeratech Overdragon!_"

"…No, not that!"

"Yes, and because I fused four monsters, my dragon has a total of 3200 points!"

"3200!!!"

"Scared? Well, you should be, but not by its attack points. My Overdragon can attack four times, one each for the number of material monsters I used!"

Zane's opponent staggered back, "but that means…"

"You're life points are mine! With only three monsters on the field, all in attack mode with less stats than Chimera's, well, you're through. _Chimeratech Overdragon, _attack!"

"And Zane Truesdale wins…again! He just simply cannot be beat!"

* * *

Zane exited the arena and continued down the hall, avoiding the main hall where journalists would be awaiting their next duelist to pick at. Zane turned a corner and nearly walked straight into someone. Zane disregarded this person and continued, but it was when the man spoke when the young duelist stopped. 

"Hello, Mr. Truesdale. It's been a while…"

Zane didn't turn around, "Shroud."

"I'm pleased you remember me, Zane. How have you been, though your streak of wins gives me the answer…"

"Cut it, Shroud," said Zane, finally turning to face his old manager, "What do you want?"

"Just here to give you my congratulations. It's not often someone under my wing leaves me out of the picture but continues a long-lasting, wealthy streak. The last tournament gave a nice check, if I recall. You deservingly won, your opponent didn't stand a chance."

"Are you here to give a lecture? Last time I checked, I'm out of school, and you're the last person I want lecturing me."

"I'm not here to lecture you," Shroud gave a small chuckle, "I'm here to give my regards."

"Well, you already did, Shroud, and you're still here. Obviously you still want something."

"Well, in a matter of speaking, yes. But not for me, for you, Mr. Truesdale. I have a proposition for you…"

"Shroud, maybe you didn't get it when I kicked you to the street. I don't want anything more to do with you."

"What I have to offer will make you extremely powerful, Zane."

"Tch. Shroud, have you been a mud puddle for the last year? Look at me. I _am _powerful. No one can beat me. Everyone who tried failed. I have all of the fortune I need, and it continues to grow. I'm unbeatable."

"_Are_ you unbeatable Zane Truesdale? You have flounced every duelist in your way?"

"Are you seriously asking me that, Shroud?" Zane crossed his arms on his chest, "I've beaten everyone who's challenged me."

"Not everyone, Zane. You must remember him…what's his name…"

"Don't even mention him," Zane snapped.

Shroud gave an evil smirk, "So you do remember that fateful duel…"

"I'll never forget that night, and you know that. Now get down to business or I'm leaving, Shroud."

"The only way you can be _the_ best duelist is to beat him. And I can help you Zane."

Zane scoffed, "Yea, right."

"I'm very serious, Mr. Truesdale. I can get you to the crown you deserve."

"And how exactly do you plan to do that?"

"Trounce him in a duel. Humiliate him. Give him the pain he brought upon you those many months ago. End his career."

"That's your big plan? To defeat Phoenix in a duel? You made it sound as if you were going to drop him off the planet or something. I can duel circles around him."

Shroud nodded, his eyes closed, "You can duel circles around him," he repeated, "Then why haven't you?"

Zane opened his mouth to speak, but then stopped. _I can't be thinking this…but the creep is right. Why haven't I gotten back at Phoenix for nearly destroying my career? I know I can defeat him…but something…seems to hold me back…I know I'm not scared, but what's wrong with me?_

"You're scared Zane," said Shroud, "scared to lose to him again. I'm going to make sure it doesn't happen, even if you don't end up dueling Aster Phoenix until weeks from now, I'm going to make sure you are victorious. All I ask in return…is for you to allow me to become your manager again."

Zane looked at Shroud, "Forget it," he said quickly.

"I'm aware you dislike me, Zane," said Shroud calmly, "but I can help you. You let me help you get rid of Aster Phoenix, and after you are established as the King of the Circuit, I promise to fade away from your life forever."

Zane thought for a moment, "You'll get me a duel with Phoenix or something similar, get me to the top and then disappear?"

"If you wish."

Zane looked at Shroud, and then back toward the Duel Arena through the doors behind him, "I'll think about it," was all he said, as he continued out of the Kaiba Dome.

* * *

Shroud has his car stopped at an abandoned warehouse on the verge of the city. The driver, one of the ten escaped prisoners, led him within the old and dusty building and through to the secret entrance. As Shroud locked the door, his companion opened the bookcase and showed him to another room. Through a set of doors, Shroud was left with Thorn Turama, who was busy working on a laptop. 

"You get reception out here?" asked Shroud, leaning against the wall. Thorn glanced up from his computer.

"Yea, one of the boys got a hold of a unsecured connection a few blocks from here. Connection is slow, but it works."

"What are you even doing?"

"Just checking up on an old friend," said Thorn. He turned the screen to face Shroud.

Shroud went closer to the screen. "Aster Phoenix? You're looking at his dueling records? Doesn't every rock know his record by now?"

Turama chuckled, "Yes, I know of his accomplishments." He opened the door and proceeded down the hall, Shroud in tow. "I'm just catching up on my facts before our champion comes for a visit."

"Speaking of champions," Shroud began, "Why do you want me to help Zane? You and I both know that he hates my guts, and you and I also know that I don't want to help him any more than he wants my help."

Turama stopped and looked at Shroud, "Well, I have a few theories. One, being that once Phoenix is out of the way, Zane will be given the crown. He is a formidable opponent, and if at all possible, I would like him on my side."

"On your side? You sound like you're planning a complete takeover of the Leagues."

"Not quite," corrected Turama, "I have nothing against Industrial Illusions and Kaiba Corp, the two big sponsors for the Circuit. My battle is with the players, and anyone against me will…well, let's just say that they will follow Katie's example."

"I see…"

"Did Zane agree to my proposal?" asked Thorn.

Shroud shrugged, "He said he would think about it. I think he's torn between wanting to defeat Phoenix, but having to put up with me."

Thorn nodded understandingly, "That's to be expected. He kicked you to the streets with the idea of leaving you behind forever, and here you are offering him help. Don't pressure him, Shroud. Give him time to think it over. If he declines, so be it. I will think of a new strategy to win him. Otherwise, he might end up as an enemy."

The two continued down another hall, neither of them speaking. It was Shroud who broke the silence, "So, where is Simmons?"

"Maxwell Simmons? Oh, he's…being taken care of…"

Shroud smirked, "May I ask how?"

They had stopped walking and were at the door leading to the stairs. Thorn led him down to the door below. Closing the door behind him, Shroud looked around. How a room this large made it into an abandoned warehouse, he will never know. The floor below was several feet down, but two feet below the edge of the path was a pool of water. Sets of stairs were at the other side, leading up to a walking path above. He could see a hook on the ceiling.

"How deep?" Shroud knelt closer to the water's edge.

"Twenty feet."

Shroud looked up at his companion, "Are we underground? There's no way…"

"We are underground, Shroud."

"So you're going to drown Simmons?"

Thorn laughed and shook his head, "No. This is for Phoenix."

"So what are you going to do with Simmons? Did you just capture him and then kill, or what?"

"I told myself I would not use the same murder methods twice. Katie was shot to death, Simmons…well, I'll leave that a surprise for when it hits the news tomorrow."

Shroud nodded, "Fair enough. So this room is for Phoenix, you say?"

"Yes, that's right."

"I find it hard that you say Aster Phoenix caused you all of this suffering, but you're just going to drown him."

"That's only a piece of it. You see, my friend, Mr. Phoenix is different. I'm going to give him all the prolonged pain and suffering he deserves. I'm going to make his life a living hell. Then I'm going to kill him."

"So why drowning?"

"Based on my research, Aster is a pro athlete in various sports, but his favorites include surfing and deep-sea diving. I find it funny how his past-time favorites will be his end."

* * *

_Sartorius found himself in a dark, dimly lit room, in an unfamiliar place. He saw a clock on the far wall and reached for it, but to his surprise his hand went through the wall when he placed his palm upon it. Turning back to the center of the room, he noticed something he didn't see before._

_How could I have missed this? Sartorius thought to himself as he took a step closer. He saw Aster dueling, though he could tell his star duelist was suffering. He was breathing heavily and was hunched over, as if someone had run forward and kicked him in the stomach. He was slightly leaning more on his left leg. Strange bands were upon Aster's wrists, upper arms, and ankles. There wasn't one, however, on the wrist his duel-disk was connected to. Aster's opponent was hidden by the darkness of the room._

_He could hear the opponent though, the voice seemed familiar, and he couldn't place where he had previously heard it._

_"Aster, what's going on?" asked Sartorius._

_Either Aster didn't hear him, or ignored him completely. Sartorius touched Aster's arm gently, but like with the wall, his hand went through. Sartorius then figured that whatever he did would have no effect on his sights._

_The mysterious voice commanded an attack, and the dueling manager watched Aster's lifepoints drop from 3800 to zero._

_"Aster, you lost! But to who?" Sartorius said to no one in particular, but like before, he wasn't heard._

_Sartorius was then horrified to see the strange band light up, and then watch Aster's face contort in pain. Obviously the strange things were hurting him._

_Aster, already weak from before the blast, was sent backwards and landed with a thud on the other side of the room._

_Sartorius hurried to his side. The pro seemed to be out cold. "Aster!" He tried to shake his duelist's shoulder, but his hand went right through. A few seconds went by, and Aster still didn't stir._

_Finally, his opponent, face still hidden, approached Aster and Sartorius._

_"Who are you?" Sartorius demanded. The man, unable to hear Sartorius, knelt down and began removing the bands. After taking one off Aster's right upper arm, he stopped, and reached his hand toward Aster's tie. The man pulled a small red-blinking chip from the underside of Aster's tie. Glancing at the item he found, he narrowed his eyes._

_The man stood suddenly, then went to the other side of the room and threw the door open. Another figure was in the doorway, but due to the dim lighting and darkness, Sartorius was unable to see who it was. He was only able to hear Aster's dueling opponent._

_"He wore a tracker. Get him ready – he dies tonight."_

_"Aster!" Sartorius shouted, trying to wake him, "Aster, wake up!"_

"Sartorius!"

_Sartorius looked around. He had heard his duelist speak, but Aster was still unconscious_.

"Sartorius!"

Sartorius's eyes flew open, as he glanced around frantically. There was no dark room, mysterious figures, nor was there Aster, unconscious in pain on the ground. He was in a waiting room, a nurse next to him, and Aster sitting beside him.

"Aster! What the –"

"Sartorius, are you okay? You were mumbling, and you kind of dozed off."

"Sir," the nurse began, "if it's alright, we're going to take Mr. Phoenix to the examination room now."

Sartorius looked around confused, trying to understand what his dream was about, and remember what was going on at the same time.

"Aster, what is going on?"

"Jeez, you must have really been sleeping," Aster grinned, "the Doc is taking a look at my bones, and hopefully the cast will come off, remember?"

"Oh, that's right. I'll wait here."

Aster nodded and went with the nurse through the door.

Sartorius looked at his hands, lying in his lap. _Was that dream only a dream? Could I be predicting the future again? Since the Light of Destruction, save a small fraction, was destroyed from inside of me, my powers have been depleted somewhat. If this omen should come to pass, Aster is in great danger! If only I could remember where that voice came from…I know I've heard it before…_

* * *

That's all for now! I know, you're probably going to kill me for the ending like that, but oh well! I have to leave you in suspense somehow! 

My poll is set up to update the fan favorites more often, so voice your thoughts!

The purple button below loves holiday cheer, so feel free to share your mind in any way, shape, or form.

Have a wonderful holiday, and I'll see you in 2008!


	5. Chapter 5

Happy New Year everyone! So far my poll is going pretty well. This story (as of Jan 1) is in the lead with 4 votes, so it's getting the first update of the new year!

After this update, I'll probably work on my other fanfics for a bit so there might be a gap in updating between chapters four and five.

With that off my chest, let the next installment begin!

I don't own SpongeBob SquarePants (You'll figure it out later. Don't worry. I'm not nuts) I also don't own GX. I wouldn't be writing GX fanfictions if I did – it would be kind of pointless…I only own my OCs, and they aren't even that important (well some of them are…but I'm done ranting now).

* * *

Chapter 5 

(Remember from Chapter 3 I had told you that as long as one of the duels in this story aired on TV, I would only put the end of the duel in the chapter? Well, I'm only putting the end of the next bunch of duels in the chapters because it takes _so_ long to type it all out. Happy reading!)

Professor Viper sat at his computer in the old abandoned lab. The lab was situated in the thick of the forest on the island, far enough from the academy that students wouldn't wander in unexpectedly.

"My bio-bands are working perfectly. I gained so much energy from Jaden and Jesse's match; I've never dreamed it possible. However, I might just turn up the absorption rate to get the energy faster. After all, my time is short," Viper said aloud, "Of course, that will bring up some unwanted side-affects among the students…"

After typing a few short commands, a screen showing every current duel came up. Some students were doing well, whether winning or not, they were producing high results. Some students were dueling well, not exceptional, but not terrible; and select two or three Slifer students were continuously losing.

_Hmm, they have one more chance at redemption – or those three can say good-bye to Duel Academy_, thought Viper. His eyes then fell on the duel between Axel Brodie and Jaden Yuki. _Excellent. Axel is doing exactly what I had told him. He's making Jaden put forth his best. Attack after attack, Jaden's duel spirit is phenomenal. And once I gain enough duel energy from the bio-bands, I will then be able to harness all of the energy. Everything is going according to plan…_

* * *

Alexis was in her dorm room, flipping through her dueling deck with Atticus watching TV. 

"Atticus, don't you have duels to prep for?"

"Well, yea, but I don't feel like doing it now. A pop star in the making always has to keep up-to-date with the current celebrity trends!"

Alexis rolled her eyes, "Oh, right. Getting married to an actress you really don't like so you can be in a scandal in a week and divorce at the end of the next. How exciting is that…"

"No, sis! I mean keeping up with music styles and trends, and the latest fashion! Can't go on stage wearing something from 100 years ago, right?"

"You can, if your style of music is from the early 1900s."

"That's not what I mean, Lexi."

"And what makes you think watching cartoons is going to help your dream of becoming a pop star duelist?"

"Hey. C'mon, Alexis! There's nothing wrong with a little SpongeBob!"

Alexis looked up from _Scape Goat_ and looked her brother square in the eye, "In _my_ room, there is no SpongeBob. Got it?"

"Aw, why not? What's wrong with SpongeBob?"

The SpongeBob on TV did his signature laugh.

"Everything. I hate SpongeBob, so change the channel or turn it off."

"I would have thought that you, Lex, of all people, would appreciate a good cartoon." Atticus pouted, but changed the station. Alexis sighed and went back to her deck.

It was another three minutes of silence before Atticus interrupted her, "Come look, Lexi! Aster's on TV!"

Alexis looked up to see Sartorius, along with Aster, leaving a doctor's office. Although the camera flashes from the media made it a little hard to see, Alexis could tell the duelist was walking on his own two feet again.

"Look, Atti! He got his crutches off!"

"Yup, and you know what that means, right? The Pro Dueling channel is going to get real good!"

* * *

Axel looked at Jaden's side of the field. _This kid's got guts, _he thought. _He's got no monsters, hardly any life points, and he's talking about winning? Most duelists would have thrown the towel five rounds ago, but not Jaden. I see why Viper's so interested in him now. He's got an infinite-like amount of spirit. Every time I knock him down, he comes right back up even stronger! But this time…I'm going to be ready for him. All I have to do is reinforce my playing field. _"I put down two facedown cards and that's all." 

Jaden smiled, "I was hoping you'd say that, Axel!" Jaden drew a card, " I summon _Elemental Hero Wildheart_! And because he's immune to traps, your _Fire Wall_ can't stop him.

"You think so? Then bring him on."

"You've got it!" Jaden then commanded his monster to attack.

Axel watched _Wildheart_ come closer. _Now's my chance! If I activate my trap called _Volcanic Force_, then I'll be able to win the duel! …Wait! I can't!_ Axel looked behind Jaden, where he could see a monitoring device. Axel knew Viper would be monitoring the duel, _I gave my word to Viper I wouldn't focus on winning!_

Axel pointed to his facedown card, "I activate _Wild Fire_. I give up 500 points and _Blaze Accelerator, _to destroy all monsters on the field."

"Aw man!" Jaden watched his _Wildheart _shatter.

"But unlike you, Jaden," said Axel, "I'm not alone, because I can summon a _Wild Fire Token_!" _Sorry, Viper, but I have no choice now but to win. His defenses are gone and I've dragged this out as long as possible, and now it's time to end this! _Axel then spied Jaden's lone facedown card, that's been there for what seemed like an eternity. _Wait! If I'm right, his card will save him the duel._

"Axel, it's been fun, but the duel is mine!" Jaden activated his facedown card, "I play _Elemental Mirage!_ Now I can bring back an Elemental Hero! And if its attack points are higher than your Fire Token, then you're out of luck! Now I bring back _Elemental Hero Wildheart_! Now show him what you've got!"

As the Fire Token was destroyed, Axel's lifepoints dropped from 300 to zero. _You've got what you wanted Viper_,thought Axel._ Jaden's used all his power._

As Axel's bioband lit up, he knew immediately something was wrong. His eyes widened as he put a hand to his chest. _Something's not right here! What have you done, Viper?_ He lowered himself to one knee to steady himself. Jaden, on the other hand, collapsed. Syrus, Jesse, and Hassleberry, who were all watching the duel, rushed to Jaden's side and brought him to the infirmary.

"So what happened to him exactly?" asked Ms. Fontaine. She looked at her test results.

"Jaden was dueling, and then he just plain collapsed!" exclaimed Jesse.

Ms. Fontaine shook her head. "Impossible! No one falls into complete unconsciousness from a duel!"

"Well, it was getting intense," said Syrus.

"But still," said the nurse, "it doesn't add up. He must have a pre-existing condition."

"Hey, what's up?" asked Jaden, as his eyes opened, "Why are you all staring at me?"

"Jaden! You're awake!" cried Syrus.

"Yea, Sy. So are you. What's the big deal?"

"Oh Jaden! I'll never leave your side!" Syrus cried. Jesse and Hassleberry looked at each other, and then back at Jaden, as Syrus continued, "I'm going to make sure I have an eye on you 24 hours a day, seven days a week! I'm going to make sure nothing like this ever happens to you again!"

Jaden laughed, "Yea, that's nice!" Jaden closed his eyes and nodded off.

Syrus began to flip when Ms. Fontaine put a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Relax, he's only sleeping!"

Syrus laughed nervously, "Oh. I knew that."

* * *

"Something must be done," said Crowler, walking through the halls of Duel Academy, "Professor Viper is scaring the students!" 

"That's our job!" nodded Bonaparte.

"We should do something!" Crowler looked determinedly at the shorter co-Vice Chancellor.

"Absolutely!"

"And since your smaller, you can talk to Professor Viper!"

"Excusez-moi!?**[1** I see no reason why you can't do it yourself!"

"Well, I…I…I'm very busy!"

Bonaparte rolled his eyes, "Please. You're no busier than anyone else. Besides, you're closer to the Chancellor than I am. It would be more convenient if you talked to Sheppard."

"Well, I…eh…I know! We'll go together!"

"It's about time you thought of something intelligent, Crowler."

Bonaparte began down the next hall, "I think that Viper should be removed. He can't change all of the rules. Right Crowler?" He looked about. "Crowler?" He looked behind. Crowler was running the other way. "Where are you going?"

"I think I smelled fondue in the staffroom!"

"Oh, well that's – hey! The staffroom doesn't have a fondue pot! Get back here you big baby!" Bonaparte, although handicapped by his rather short legs, took off after his companion.

* * *

"Hey, Boss?" asked one of the 'henchmen' **[2**, Smith, "Why aren't you going after all other duelists that made your life miserable? Why only a few?" 

"As much as I would like them all to pay, and pay dearly," said Thorn, flipping through a magazine, "I don't want to police to make the connection. By killing a few, and having their relationships with me nowhere near each other, the blame is off of me."

"Well, what if we did it for you, the way we were going to originally, before we hooked up with you?" asked another of the ten, called Drake.

"What do you mean?" asked Thorn, putting down the periodical.

"What we mean," said Jack, the leader of his group, "is that before we were caught, we made a plan for our business. We were going to take duelists with one-of-a-kind cards, kill them our own way, and then dispose the bodies with a note and empty duel-disk. If we do enough of those people in-between your own fun, the public may be distracted from you and more focused on us. If we take some of the ones on your list, and other random duelists and sprinkle them together, the order may be random enough that the police can't put the individual pieces together."

"I like it," said Thorn, after a moment's pause, "But leave the few I was going to do myself to me. I'll do those when I'm ready. And make sure you hit the Circuit hard. The Leagues won't know what had hit them."

"We can start whenever."

"Whenever you like," smirked Thorn, "just make sure Phoenix is mine. If you wish, you can scare him, make him frightened, but I will let you know when you can officially collect our young friend."

"Got it," Jack nodded. He and his nine others left.

* * *

The next morning, Axel sat in his room in Obelisk Blue. In front of him sat mounds of food. 

"There," he said to no one, "the perfect combination of protein and carbs. If my energy isn't back after this, then something is definitely wrong."

After taking a humongous swig of something in an orange bottle, he let out a humongous burp. "I've never felt so run down after a duel…"

* * *

"Being sick rocks!"

Syrus and Hassleberry entered the infirmary, "Feeling better, Jay?" asked Syrus.

"You bet!" Jaden picked up another tray of food.

"That was fast," said Atticus. He was sitting backwards on a chair by Jaden's bed.

"Too fast if you ask me," said Hassleberry.

Jaden put down the empty food tray on his bed and grabbed his fifth, but not last tray of food. Immediately, he dug into it.

"You might want to think about coming up for air?" asked Alexis, her hands on her hips.

"Never get between Jaden and five plates of hospital food," said Chazz, shaking his head.

"When are you coming back to Slifer?" asked Syrus.

"Never, Sy! Dorm food is nothing like this!"

Hassleberry looked at the trays greedily, "Can you spare a bite or two?"

"Never!"

"You seem to be fine, Jaden. But I would stay away from doing anything strenuous for the next two weeks," said Ms. Fontaine.

"One question," said Jaden between mouthfuls, "Is eating strenuous?" He downed three entire trays in one swallow, and everyone else stared in disbelief.

Once he was done, Jaden rushed from the hospital, Syrus and Hassleberry behind.

"Keep an eye on him, will you?" Ms. Fontaine asked Alexis, "If he gets tired again, bring him back?"

"Sure thing," smiled Alexis, "We're used to babysitting for Jaden at this point."

"Well, just make sure he takes a nap or two. And _no dueling for two weeks!_"

"Umm…" Alexis and Atticus shared an uneasy glance. Jaden and no dueling never added up before and it wasn't about to start now.

* * *

Jaden, after Alexis, Atticus, and Chazz looked everywhere for him, was under his favorite tree, dueling Jesse. Though there were no duel-disks involved, the two were still laughing and enjoying themselves.

"See? If you would have attacked with this when you activated your spell card, you would have won, Jesse!"

"Yea, but this card's more fun to play!"

"But it cost you the duel!"

"So?"

"I'm guessing you lost, right Jesse?" asked Atticus.

"Yep. It was fun too. One of the best games ever…without a duel disk, anyhow."

"Guys!" Jim and Adrian ran up to the others. Adrian, who reached first, and was out of breath said, "There's something you should see. C'mon!"

"What is it Adrian?" asked Alexis.

"I'm afraid there's been another murder and disappearance, and that's not all, mates," said Jim, "But we'll let you see for yourselves. You see, Adrian and I were watching some Pro Dueling on the Tube** [3** and a breaking news story interrupted. I managed to pop a tape in and record as much as I could."

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Jaden stood up, "Let's go!"

"But where are we going to watch?" asked Syrus, "there's no TV in the Slifer dorms!"

"Relax, Gents, we can go to my room." Jim led the group into his Obelisk room. Turning on the TV and VCR he played the news story.

_"It's a sad day in the world of dueling. Hi, I'm Bridgett Tremaine, with live coverage of this terrible, terrible story. Only a short time ago, Maxwell Simmons, a high-ranking Pro Duelist disappeared without a trace. This seemed immediate following the tragic murder of Katie Bish, another professional duelist. Now, the search for Simmons is over._

_"According to Mrs. Simmons, who was leaving her home earlier this morning to go to work, she found her husband, hanging from the tree in her front yard. While doctors are trying to figure out if the hanging is the actual cause of death, police questioned the neighbors to see if they had heard or seen something strange through the night._

_"While Mrs. Simmons is unavailable for comment, we will be revealing more on this story when more information is available."_

"Oh wow," said Syrus, "That's horrible. Can you imagine, leaving your house, worried sick about your husband's kidnapping, to find him dead pretty much at your front door? I might have died with shock!"

"There's more to the broadcast than this, mates," said Jim, "just wait 'till the commercial is over."

"_Hi, I'm Bridgett Tremaine. Welcome back to our Breaking News coverage. As if the death of Maxwell Simmons wasn't enough, three more duelists have disappeared. Investigators are trying desperately to find a link in all of these happenings._

_"Last night, Vyctoria Hign was declared missing when nobody at home answered the phone. Hign was at home at the time, recovering from a sprained ankle, which she received when she slipped getting out of her car last week in the rain. Her husband came home to find the front door open, rooms in shambles and his wife gone. Search teams are on the move, but from the past two turnouts, there is the thought of many that she won't return alive. While search teams are optimistic on finding her, family and friends, sadly, are not._

_"Other dueling disappearances include Clyde McDowell, a runner up in 'Duel for Donations' Tournament, and Scott Jenkins, who was the winner in the donations tournament. Anyone with information on these disappearances should immediately contact police._

_"And now, our final dueling story comes with a little more explosive detail. Literally. We take you live to Estate Drive with Carrie Kink. How are you Carrie?"_

The screen changed to a wooded street. Smoke was seen above the tops of the trees. Police, firefighting and medical vehicles were on the scene.

_"I'm fine, Bridgett, but for the residents at the Phoenix estate, things were a bit far from okay. As you can see behind me are the gates to Aster Phoenix's home. Or, what's left of it. Bomb squads are ready to move in and find out what caused the explosion that rocked the brand new house to its foundation. I mean that almost one hundred percent literally, Bridgett, there's not much of the place left. Firefighters have gotten the blaze under control, and we are waiting for the police to give the okay signal to come closer."_

_"Has Aster Phoenix been able to comment at all, Carrie?"_

_"No, Bridgett, I'm not sure where exactly he is. He might be closer to the house; he may not even be here at all! My crew here is stuck outside the gates until we get the – oh, all right. We just got the signal! Carrie, I'm telling you, none of us have a clue to what's going on, so we're learning with you on this._

_"Okay, we're getting some footage of the house to you. Do you see it? Oh, this is terrible!"_

_"I see it, Carrie."_

_"The left side of the mansion…it's just gone! There's debris everywhere, oh! Hang on Bridgett, a car just pulled up. Mr. Sartorius, can you comment at all on what's happening?"_

"It's Sartorius!" Jaden leaned closer to the screen.

"Hey, Slacker, lean back. Some of us want to watch!"

_"I'm afraid I have no idea what's going on," Sartorius wasn't at all facing the camera. He was glancing at the house, "Have you seen Aster at all?"_

_"Mr. Sartorius, is he even home?"_

_"No, he's not. He was meeting with Seto Kaiba to talk about something – wait, who is this?" The camera followed Sartorius as he approached a limo stopping outside the gates. Both Seto Kaiba and Aster got out._

_"Folks, it seems Aster Phoenix has just arrived on the scene, and it seems Seto Kaiba is with him. Mr. Phoenix!"_

_"What!?" Aster turned to face Carrie, and before she could ask him anything, said, "No. Haven't the foggiest."_

_Aster then went to the nearest cop, standing at the patrol car, "Hey! What the hell his going on?"_

_The cop listened to something on his walkie-talkie and then turned to face Aster. "Bomb squad just reported in. Someone planted explosives on the left side of the house, under what used to be a bush. Do you know why someone would want to kill you, Mr. Phoenix?"_

_"Well, there is a crazy nut going around killing duelists, isn't there? Other than that, no."_

_"Someone is obviously trying to kill you, Mr. Phoenix. The police department will gladly send officers for bodyguards."_

_"That won't be – can you please get that camera out of my face!"_

_"Bridgett I'll be back with more coverage!"_

_"Thanks Carrie, now we will keep you posted with these stories as the info comes to us. For those watching, have a good, safe day. This is Bridgett Tremaine, signing off."_

* * *

"Someone is obviously trying to kill you, Mr. Phoenix. The police department will gladly send officers for bodyguards."

"That won't be – can you please get that camera out of my face!" Aster glared at the reporter.

When she was easily out of earshot, along with the camera, Aster turned back to the cop, "Fine, but they better not be overweight, lazy, donut-eating pigs like half of the police crew."

The cop nodded, "You will be protected by the most respected-officers in the police force, Mr. Phoenix. After each one is given a background check, if you would like to, you may chose your guards."

"Fine."

"Aster, where do you plan on staying?" Sartorius asked. Aster didn't answer.

The pro duelist looked back at his half-destroyed home. "Was there any evidence or something left behind?"

"We still have crews sweeping the grounds."

"What's that?" Aster pointed to the tree closest to the gutted home. Something was pinned to the bark. Aster, stepping around the debris and wreckage, stood at the mysterious object. It turned out to be a piece of cardboard, with a message, written in what looked like blood from first glance, standing out against the board.

_You're next, Phoenix._

* * *

Dun, Dun, Dun!!!!

The purple button below adores attention, so give it some. Or don't give it some…brownies to every reviewer of this story!

**[1** I haven't had a French class in a year, so any I put in; it's going to be as easy-to-follow as possible. Bonaparte there said, "Excuse me!?" But I think you figured that out.

**[2** If you remember the ten escapees mentioned in a previous chapter, some were with Thorn when he was describing his plan of Aster's perfect murder. Well, now they have names. I'll put them all up on my profile when I get the chance so for now, here are the names: Jack, Vikter, Hikaru, Akusa, Smith, Drake, Zen, Sparks, Knuckles, and Cliff. A small bio for each one will be on my profile.

**[3** In case you didn't know, the 'tube' is TV.

See you next time!


	6. Chapter 6

Well, hello everyone! It's been a while, hasn't it? After adjusting to a new semester (Shakespeare class rocks!), I'm ready to bang out some new material. Then the fifth season of JAG (Judge Advocate General) came out, and I've been watching it nearly a disk at a time, average of 3 episodes a day. Yea. My obsessions get the better of me at times, but don't get mad at me. I started watching it when my father bought the first season on DVD and fell in love with the series. Those of you who enjoy my other works, the updates for that should be on the way shortly.

Onward!

I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX. By now, everyone knows that…

* * *

Chapter 6

_There was a gash on his forehead. The blood had stopped; the cut wasn't too deep. Blood trickled down his cheek and hardened there. A bump was forming near the cut. The dark room was familiar. A semi loud buzz, and then a cry of pain was heard. The dueldisk light showed the lifepoints decreasing. It was a large difference, from forty-eight to twenty-three._

_The stranger from before barked something to someone unseen. The lights brightened a small fraction. _

_Aster was standing, though for how much longer no one knew. He was gasping for breath, and trembling. The strange collars on his upper arms, wrists, and ankles were blinking; a few were smoking. His dueling opponent looked fairly pleased. Apparently it was his turn, so he drew a card. Chuckling, he activated a trap and a spell. One dealt two thousand life points of damage. Another painful shout as the bands lit and blinked red and yellow lights. The spell card destroyed the monster on Aster's side of the field, bringing his lifepoints somehow to zero. _

_The blast altogether from the two cards and the bands combined was powerful enough to send Aster backwards. He was unconscious before he hit the floor. _

_The duel victor marched to where Aster lay with a slight spring in his step; obviously he was pleased with the events unfolding in front of him. One by one, he removed the bands from Aster. However, something made him stop when he reached for Aster's left arm._

_Out of the darkness, a red light was blinking against Aster's chest. The bands were no longer lit, and the light was coming from the underside of the young pro's necktie. Strangely, yet carefully at the same time, the victor twisted part of the tie around to see the underside without ruining the overall appearance of Aster's suit. Why he didn't just rip the article of clothing from the unconsious duelist was unknown. However, he picked a small device from the boy's clothes, and stood. This something was the cause of the blinking, and it gave the man a bit of alarm. _

_Leaving Aster helplessly lifeless on the floor, the man rushed to the door, opened it, and called for someone nearby. Whispering something into someone else's ear and pointing to Aster, the victor of the duel fled from the room. The second man continued to take the bands off of Aster's arms and legs. Strangely then, all went black…_

Sartorius fidgeted, and turned over in bed, trying to shake the images from his mind.

_The room changed to a large chamber. Below was a large pool of water; it was hard to tell how deep. Above was an empty hook. A door on the side burst open, and many people ran into the room, stopping short from falling into the water. One of them took something off of his back – it seemed to be a crocodile – and jumped into the water, followed by four other boys. Some of the other companions, including one girl, stayed behind out of the water._

_One of the boys above water pointed out a cord that went from under the water high up to the ceiling connected to something somewhere else. The taller of the remaining, left the chamber back the way he had came. Soon the tall boy returned._

_After a few moments, one of the group members came out of the water and yelled something to his remaining companions. Of the ones left, two more jumped in, along with the crocodile._

_Finally, two of the divers surfaced and left the water. They reached for something under the water that the divers were trying to hand off. It took everyone above water to pull it out. It seemed to be (from looking from the very top of the room) a large block of some sort. A cable of some kind was tied to the block and continued into the water. When the boys jumped out of the water, they brought something else out with them; it was a person. This someone was unresponsive and injured; his right ankle was swollen. The group huddled around the figure when everything went dark yet again…_

Sartorius moaned, and tossed to his other side.

_This time, Sartorius saw himself in the reflection of the glass window looking into a window. Doctors were about trying to revive him. Sartorius looked away as one of the doctors came out of the room, a grim look on his face._

_Without waiting for a report, Sartorius rushed into the room. The expression on the boy's face wasn't troubled or pained, but peaceful. The machine monitoring his heart rate showed a flat line…_

Sartorius bolted from his dream, and sat straight up, his face sweaty, the bed sheets tangled about him. Getting up, Sartorius paced around the room, then stopped to peek through the blinds.

After the attack, he and Aster had temporarily moved in with Serena, who lived just outside of Domino. She had let the two stay while the other half of Aster's home would be restored.

"What does this all mean?" he asked, speaking to the wall, "These visions, these premonitions, and can they be coming true? This isn't the first time I've seen them…and they involve Aster…"

Sartorius shook his head, "Still, must be cautious…" He left his room and headed downstairs to get a drink, and was surprised to see Serena awake.

"Something bothering you, Sartorius?" she asked. She was standing by the stove.

"Yes, but I must ask, why are you up?"

"For the same reason you are, I suppose," she said with a smile, "trouble sleeping?"

"Yes, but it is much more than that."

Serena got a teacup and poured herself some tea, "Do you want to talk about it?"

"I don't want to worry you, Serena."

"Sartorius, I know what's going on. Duelists are winding up dead, and Aster was nearly next. I'm already worried about you two, so it can't get much worse."

"I'm having the visions again…"

"I thought after Jaden defeated the Light, you couldn't see the future anymore!"

"I still can, but not as well as before. Part of the Light of Destruction still lives inside of me, but not enough to take over completely."

Serena nodded, "So what kind of visions are they?"

"I might call them bad omens," said Sartorius, "they've been about Aster."

"Hmmm, how many have you had?" asked Serena. She took a sip of tea and sat at the table, "of Aster."

"This as at least the second. The first dream was of a duel. Aster was dueling someone I couldn't see, and then he lost. Something happened and he was in pain, but I couldn't see how."

"And then what?" asked Serena.

"The victor, whoever he – or she – was, said something to someone else I couldn't recognize – and that was about it."

Serena nodded, with a troubled expression on her face, "and that was only the first dream?"

"Yes, and the next one was like many dreams in one. It started out with the duel from before, and then it switched to a very large room. The ceiling was high – very high, and there was a pool of some sort below."

"Well, what about the room?" asked Serena, getting more tea.

"A bunch of kids entered the room…well, teenagers. From where I could see, it seemed to be Jaden and his friends, but I couldn't be too sure. Most of them jumped into the water. They came out about a minute or so later…" Sartorius paused, "are you sure you wish to know?"

Serena sighed, "Sartorius, you've already told me most of it…. Now what happened when they came out?"

"They brought out Aster. He seemed to be unconscious, and he looked injured. Then the vision changed once more to a hospital where…where…" Sartorius couldn't bring himself to say, and looked down to face the table.

Serena looked down at her half-empty cup, "he died, didn't he?" she said softly.

Sartorius looked up slightly, glanced back down, and nodded.

"Brother, this may not come true! Your ability to see the future was weakened when Jaden beat you in that duel. Perhaps these are just dreams!"

"I know but…" Sartorius got up from the table and paced around the kitchen, "it's that Aster is like both a brother and a son to me. I don't know what would happen if he were to go like this. What if I caused his death? I would never forgive myself!"

"Quiet down," Serena hissed, "or he'll hear you!"

"I'm afraid I'm going to do something stupid, get him carted off and shot – or in this case, perhaps drowned." Sighing, Sartorius retook his seat, "Serena, what do I do?"

"Perhaps you should talk to him," said Serena, "does he know about these…dreams?"

"No, I don't want to worry him."

"After all that's going on, he's not at all concerned?" asked Serena, "Someone blew up half of his house!"

"I know, Aster tries not to show it, but he is concerned about these events. He's trying to make himself believe everything is alright, so we don't worry about him."

"Sartorius, you should go talk to him. He deserves to know what's going on."

"I don't know…"

"You kept your Society of Light skirmish secret from him and look what that brought? You almost lost your dearest friend. Don't leave him in the dark, Sartorius. I'm begging you."

"Alright, Serena – but you don't have to beg!"

Serena smiled.

* * *

That afternoon, Sartorius sat in his sister's living room, looking at the daily paper. To his relief, there were no additional duelist deaths.

Aster then came through the room, buttoning his silver jacket. "I'm going out, Sartorius."

His manager looked up, "Out?"

"Yea."

"Where?"

Aster frowned, "Kaiba Corp. I was meeting with Seto Kaiba when someone found it funny to blast a nice hole in my wall."

"What are you meeting with him for?"

"Nothing special, just meeting with him."

Sartorius didn't exactly believe him, but shrugged, "Be back soon, Aster. I don't want to find you in the Obituary section of tomorrow's paper."

As Aster left, Sartorius looked at the spot where Aster was previously standing. _I think he's hiding something...it was though he was trying to cover something up. But besides that, 'should I have told him now?_ _What if I used my last chance to warn him and I never see him again?_ Quickly, Sartorius shook the thoughts from his mind. _Of course he'll be back. He's going to Kaiba Corp. There must be ten thousand security guards there…I wonder what the meeting was for?_

* * *

Hmm, this chapter is a bit short…but for now that's all I have. Believe it or not, this chapter came to me in spurts, and I'm not entirely sure if it all made sense. Sometimes things in my head make less sense when on paper (or in this case, the computer).

I'm going to work on my other fanfics for a stretch of time, so I suppose this is your early Valentine's Day gift.

Leave your questions, comments, blackmail, complaints, harassment, praise and all of that good stuff with the little purple button – he'll know where to file it.


	7. Chapter 7

Well, hello everyone. I'm sure I've got no loyal readers left after my **3 year absence**, but I'll have to wait and see how it goes. "Graduation is approaching (or, **depending on when I finish this chapter**, past) so I have the summer months before my start at college to make a serious dent in my stories." Yea, that sentence in quotes was written when I first started writing this chapter – June 2008. I'm a college junior now. Anyone who goes on my profile could see that _all _of my stories took a big hit (save any that began within the past year). But I currently am getting back into GX again after a three year hiatus, so hopefully some updates will be heading your way. I recently read through the first six posted chapters, and I gotta say, my writing has improved (I hope). I'd love to know what my readers (if any) think after going through this update.  
Beyond that, I have nothing to say...enjoy this extremely overdue chapter.  
For a disclaimer, read the previous chapters. Nothing has changed.  
Happy reading!

* * *

Chapter 7

Aster stepped out of his car at Kaiba Corp and was immediately flanked by two of Seto Kaiba's security guards.  
"Err, is this all necessary?" he asked, as he headed up the stairs to the front entrance of the building.  
The guard on his left opened the door for him, "Mr. Kaiba made it clear that nothing was to happen to you pending your arrival today."  
Aster raised an eyebrow and then sighed, "…Not that extra people would be much good if someone decided to blow my car up, but thanks, I guess."  
Roland came off a side elevator just as Aster approached the receptionist's desk. She glanced up from her computer, giving him a clearly forced smile. "Can I help you?" she asked.  
Aster blinked. He could somehow tell she wasn't going to be cooperative. "I need to see Mr. Kaiba."  
"Do you have an appointment?"  
"Well, no, not exactly, but –"  
"You need to schedule an appointment. Both Seto and Mokuba Kaiba are full today. The earliest I can set you in is probably next week."  
"Next week?" Aster exclaimed. It was Monday.  
"Yes, depending, of course. Which Kaiba do you need to see?"  
"Seto Kaiba…."  
The receptionist flipped through a calendar on her desk, "Well, if you're lucky, you might get a spot next Friday."  
"Well, I need to see him _now_." Aster's temper was beginning to rise. It wasn't _his _fault his prior meeting with Kaiba had been interrupted by someone bombing his mansion. He was starting to wonder if Seto Kaiba's usual icy personality was now a requirement for his receptionists.

Roland then took the opportunity to resolve the matter. Approaching the desk, he took the calendar from the lady's hands and placed it on the desk. "Mr. Phoenix, Mr. Kaiba will see you now."  
The receptionist gaped at Roland, "But, sir, Mr. Kaiba is meeting with very important people from –"  
"He'll reschedule. If you'll follow me, Mr. Phoenix," Roland led Aster to the elevator he had earlier come off of. Sliding a card through a recognizer, the lift doors opened.  
"Mr. Kaiba is currently meeting with Maxamillion Pegasus to discuss an upcoming event at the Kaiba Dome," said Roland, as the elevator began to climb.

"Why did he call me back here if he was in a meeting with Pegasus?" Aster asked, leaning against the elevator wall, "I could have rescheduled with him over the phone."

Roland gave a small chuckle, "Not that I pay any attention to how Mr. Kaiba runs his business dealing, mind you, you could say that in every meeting with Mr. Pegasus, he often _arranges_ ways to leave them early."

Aster smirked, wondering if Sartorius ever used such ways to avoid getting him into various sponsorship dealings. "Only with Pegasus, huh?"

"I've observed it with him – not that I pay attention to all of Mr. Kaiba's business transactions…" he cleared his throat, "I will let you into Mr. Kaiba's office while I let him know you're here. Before I forget, you'll need this to go anywhere in the building without myself or Mr. Kaiba with you." Roland handed Aster a 'visitor' badge. The elevator doors rolled open as the pro duelist finished clipping the badge to his suit. Stepping off of the lift, the guard on the floor checked for the badge before allowing them to travel down the hall.  
The guard watched Aster walk down the hall before stepping onto it himself. Stopping on the second floor, he proceeded out a back door to a waiting car in the back of the employee lot. Opening the passenger side door, he greeted his companion in the driver's seat, taking off the dark glasses and loosening his tie.  
"How'd it go, Jack?" asked the man in the driver's seat, "Were you spotted?"  
"Please, the only disguise to fool Kaiba's lower level of security is a suit and sunglasses. Nobody noticed. I was just lucky that his head of security didn't get a good look at me."  
"What'd you figure out?" asked the other man, half listening as he pulled out of the lot, "What's going on up there?"  
"Phoenix is meeting with Kaiba for something. I don't know why though. He was there when we took out his house – and you missed the turn."

"Damn. Now what?"

"Circle the block and wait over there," said Jack, pointing to a spot off the road, "We'll see him leave the building from there…."

* * *

Sartorius drummed his fingers against the desk, looking over the most recent request for Aster to appear in a television advertisement. Unable to focus properly since his most recent premonitions, he turned in his chair and looked out the window. The top of the Kaiba Corp skyscraper was visible _I have never seen Aster so secretive. He didn't tell me why he was meeting with Seto Kaiba, of all people, the first time – and today is no different. When he comes back, I'll have to tell him. _He looked to the bottom desk drawer, where he knew Serena kept an extra deck of tarot cards. His arm reached down, but then he took a deep breath and stopped. _No. I don't want to know…not now…at least not until Aster returns. _His hand itched towards the hidden deck as Sartorius felt an uneasy jolt. Scrambling out of the chair, he crossed his arms at the window, as far from the drawer as possible. "The Light is gone," he assured himself, "It is _not_ coming back, and whatever piece of it that's left inside me needs to realize that."

When the uneasiness left, he picked up the request and reread the contents. "Perhaps I should just send Aster back to Duel Academy until this string of attacks is over…"

* * *

Zane pulled off his duel disk as he entered his apartment, having won another duel in the Kaiba Dome. Placing his deck on the table beside the disk, the pro duelist turned on the television to the Pro Dueling channel and proceeded to leaf through his cards. He had finished reading over _Cyberdark Dragon_ when something on the screen caught his eye.

"_This hour we'll be looking at the most memorable dueling moments in Duel Monsters history. Since the opening of the Kaiba Dome, dueling records have been made; they've been broken, and beaten all over again. Some careers began in this stadium, and some lost their steam. For the next hour, we're going to showcase the more memorable moments seen here at this monumental stadium. And we'll start off in the past and work our way to the present._

"_We'll start off ten years ago, when Kyle Jables was crowned the Champion of the Leagues. Dueling fans will remember that he wouldn't go on to defend his title until only months ago, when he faced Dr. Collector for a very controversial match – but we'll come to that duel later. It was after being crowned the champion that he took on his stage name "The D"…"_

The host went into a brief biography of The D as Zane went back to his cards. If an overpaid anchorman was going to retell the life of a dead champion, he wasn't interested in watching it. But it was one of the clips a moment or so later that kept his eyes glued to the screen. It was Aster Phoenix in a duel. Aster was younger, and had yet to start wearing his signature silver suit. Upon first glance, Zane figured the young prodigy was around 13 years old in the clip.

"_One of our next memorable moments comes several years later. This is from the Circuit Champions Tournament a few years ago. Most remember the winning prize for the top duelist was to have the chance to fight The D for the championship title. Of course, this was the tournament where The D had to leave the Tournament for a short amount of time due to an illness, so that promise never happened. But it's the duel itself that is memorable here. We remember Thorn Turama, the favorite to win this event, trumped at the last minute by the up-and-coming prodigy Aster Phoenix, who was only thirteen at the time. Had The D not left the spotlight at that time, and had Turama won that match, there would have been a very nice Championship Title duel. Instead, young Aster Phoenix was awarded the championship trophy and a rather nice check to compensate for the duel that couldn't happen. We'll see more of Phoenix later, but it was this duel where Turama spiraled down into a terrible losing streak. Never getting over the loss to someone likely more than half his age, the entertainment news remembers when he nearly assaulted Phoenix's manager for not allowing an instant rematch. He was escorted from the Dome and didn't return for a duel until well after a year later. The fans believed him to be on the rise again, but after losing small matches outside the Kaiba Dome, inside once he suffered a humiliating loss to Katie Bish, he left the Pro Circuit. Anyone following the recent news knows of the tragedy the Bish family is currently dealing with…._

Zane returned to his cards. He was positive he would be mentioned sooner or later, but at the moment, he wasn't interested in what happened in the past. He vaguely heard that Turama was sent to prison over a controversial rape case, but he paid it no mind. It wasn't until he returned to the tv and his cards from getting something to eat, as well as his case of extra cards, that the clip playing on the screen caused him to freeze up.

"_One of the most talked about moments here at the Kaiba Dome was the match last year between Aster Phoenix and Zane Truesdale. These two fan favorites went into the Kaiba Dome undefeated champions, but of course, only one could remain that way. After toying with Truesdale's Cyber Dragons as if they were toys on a string, Phoenix delivered him a show stopping defeat. Here are the final moments of that most memorable duel…"_

Zane clenched his fists, watching the duel he had tried hard to forget. As the crowd of Phoenix fans roared as Zane's life points hit zero, his last conversation with Shroud made its way back to the front of his mind.

"_You're scared Zane…scared to lose to him again. I'm going to make sure it doesn't happen again…you let me help you get rid of Aster Phoenix, and after you are established as the King of the Circuit, I promise to fade away from your life forever."_

Zane shook his head. "I don't need him. I haven't lost a single game since kicking that creep to the curb, and I don't regret doing it. I can defeat Phoenix anytime I want," he said to himself.

While in his thoughts, the next dueling highlight had focused on him, adding that his new wardrobe had influenced his extraordinary comeback in dueling. Zane shook his head. His new clothes represented the move from his old Academy ideals, ideals that didn't get him anywhere, to his new outlook that it was all about winning. As much as he hated to admit it, he did owe Shroud that much for getting him to get a new outlook on his career.

"_Finally, we bring you to the biggest night in Kaiba Dome history. After the long disappearance of The D, there was a clear question of what was to happen to his title. After all, Kyle Jables has held the title of Pro League Champion, or King of the Leagues for ten years. As authorities finally listed The D as deceased, based on statistics, Aster Phoenix would in the end inherit the title. However Maxamillion Pegasus and Seto Kaiba in the end decided on a duel for the title, as long time Pro Maxwell Simmons would also try to vie for the title. Simmons had currently run an undefeated streak and the corporate owners felt that a duel would repel any bias in determining the League champion. _

"_In the intense match, that night served as a first for a professional duelist to compete while recovering from a serious injury. We recall that night that for the first time, the safety device was placed on its maximum setting for Aster Phoenix who had suffered a leg injury prior to dueling. His manager refused to allow him to duel without the feature. But that didn't stop the young star from a come-from-behind obliteration of Simmons' best monsters to win it all…"_

Zane turned off the television, slumping back against the couch. Did he underestimate Aster's abilities when they first met? He shook his head as he took his cards in his hand. _I could duel circles around him now, with this deck. _But Shroud's words cut deep. Why hadn't he challenged Phoenix during the tournament at Duel Academy? _It wasn't about revenge,_ he told himself, _just winning. With his new grand title, I'll be bound to face off against Phoenix soon enough. I don't need Shroud to dictate my moves anymore. _He closed a fist around his deck; _in the meantime, as much as I despise the kid, I can't underestimate him again. I plan on winning, and there's not a Destiny Hero in his deck that will stop me._

* * *

Ms. Fontaine turned to the door to see Jim and Hassleberry be supported into the infirmary. "What happened!"

"Jim and Hassleberry were dueling," said Atticus, setting Jim down on a bed, "It was a really heated game, Jim won, but afterwards, they both just collapsed!"

"This isn't the first time," the nurse sighed, "This is getting a bit out of hand. I've already treated several Ra Yellows for exhaustion, and this looks like another case. There has to be some connection with all these duels – but in each case, there are so many variables!"

"What do you mean?" Chazz asked as Jaden and Syrus set Hassleberry down.

"Every time a student has been in here for exhaustion, it was because of a duel," said Ms. Fontaine, but there's just no way to connect them. Each case was a different match, different amounts of life points lost and just different people!"

"My, my, there are a lot of students in here today," said Crowler, as he passed by the hall with Bonaparte.

"It's not what you think, Dr. Crowler," said Alexis, "Jim and Hassleberry were in a duel, and once it ended, they both collapsed."

"This is getting out of hand," said Ms. Fontaine, "We need to stop these survival duels before I need to call Domino for help. If this keeps up, the entire school will be needing treatment."

"There's no guarantee that the duels are causing this," said Bonaparte, "unless there's some concrete evidence pointing otherwise."

"What about these bio-bands?" said Jesse, "In my last duel against one of the Obelisk students, I felt something drain my energy. Once the duel ended, I noticed the blue light on the band glow orange before the spirit was pulled outta me."

"Professor Viper is the one who started the band thing," said Jaden, "Someone should complain to him about it."

"Believe me, we tried," said Crowler, "He said we were being paranoid and this would disappear within days."

Ms. Fontaine sighed as the two vice-chancellors walked off, "In any case, please try limited your dueling to once a day, or two days if you can manage it. Try not to bite off more than you can chew, and get plenty of rest between duels. I don't want to treat you again."

"What about Jim and Hassleberry?" Jaden asked.

"They'll be fine. I'm sure they'll be on their feet again tomorrow."

They thanked her and filed out of the infirmary. "What do we do now, guys?" said Jesse.

"Well we can't avoid the duels for long. Professor Viper is monitoring them, remember?" said Chazz, "If we just stop dueling, he'll know something is up."

"I want to know why he needs the energy," said Atticus, "It's not something you can just collect and use. How do you even store duel energy?"

"I don't know," said Syrus, "But I _told _you guys that Viper was bad news. No one believed me, and now we're all on rotating schedules with the hospital!"

Jaden grinned, "Hey – at least there's good food there, right?"

Eyebrows were raised and Alexis, Chazz, and Atticus all face-palmed.

"What!"

* * *

This chapter has been long overdue, and I hope it didn't disappoint! If you find any serious errors against previous chapters, please let me know. I've gone through the previously uploaded chapters many times, but small things sometimes slip through! As always, feel free to leave questions and comments with a review or a PM.

See you next time! (Which I promise will _not _take three years!)


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: See previous chapter.

* * *

Chapter 8

_Two days later_

"And that's game!" Jaden pumped a fist, "I win again!"

Jesse sighed, "I gotta strategize better against those Neo-spacian monsters of yours, Jay. I haven't been able to beat you yet!" He put his deck back in his pocket and leaned against the tree. He and Jaden were playing in a shady spot under a large tree, duel disks left behind in Jesse's Obelisk Blue guest room. They weren't playing their duels very seriously, since there were no duel disks involved, but the bio-bands still drained a fraction of their energy.

Jaden sprawled out in the grass, "I can't wait for you to get your Rainbow Dragon card! Your deck just isn't complete without it!"

"Yea, I hear you. But I don't even know where the card is, if it's even been created yet! All I know is that there's a stone tablet with the Rainbow Dragon on it, and Pegasus needs it to make the finishing touch to my deck, but until then…how 'bout a rematch?"

"You're on!"

After that duel, which Jaden won, both students were lying in the grass, staring up at the clouds.

"Hey Jesse…."

"Yea Jay?"

"Did you know the clouds look like Duel Monsters if you stare hard enough?"

"Hey you're right! That one over there looks like that creepy Ojama spirit that's always chasin' Chazz around!"

"Oh, you mean Ojama Yellow? Yea, he's _really _attached to Chazz. You should have seen him last year when he went through an identity crisis – his Ojama monsters wouldn't leave me alone!"

"_Jay!_"

Jaden sat up quickly and looked around, "What's up Sy?"

Syrus paused from running, his hands resting on his knees. He took a deep breath and looked up at the two, "While you two were dueling all day, the rest of us, minus Axel and Adrian, were hanging out near the docks. And you'll never guess who showed up!"

"Those weird military guys who bring the new rare cards to the Card Shack?"

"Um…no, Jay."

"How about that old guy that was hanging around with us before I dueled Bastion to participate in the School Duel?"

"Wrong again!"

"Was it Pegasus with the Rainbow Dragon card?" Jesse asked. Syrus shook his head. "Yea…didn't think so."

Jaden scratched at his hair, "I got this…was it a pro duelist?"

Syrus thought for a moment, "Getting warmer!"

"I bet it was Seto Kaiba! Is there another threat to Duel Academy? Do I get to save the world? …Again?"

"Jaden, Seto Kaiba hasn't really dueled in years! You're still wrong."

"Oh man – it's Aster, isn't it? Aster's back on campus!"

Syrus sighed, "Close enough. Sartorius! He met up with the Chancellor and they're in his office right now!"

"Sartorius? Isn't that the creepy-lookin' guy who's Aster Phoenix's manager?" Jesse asked.

"That's him! I wonder what he's doing here. I mean, Aster's back in the Pro Circuit!"

"Well, let's go check it out!" Jaden jumped up and ran for the main building. "Last one to Sheppard's office is a rotten eggwich!"

Jesse and Syrus looked at each other and then bolted after him. They caught up to Jaden half-way to the Chancellor's office, having knocked into Atticus.

"You alright, Atticus?" Syrus asked, helping him up.

"I'm fine! To be honest, plowing me down was actually a favor. I've been looking for Jaden for a while. Chancellor Sheppard asked me to rally you guys up!"

"I thought he was meeting with Sartorius," said Syrus.

"Yea and he wants to see you guys. C'mon, everyone else is already there!"

"Everyone?" Jaden asked, getting up, "Who else is there?"

"Well, there's you, Syrus, Chazz, Lexi, Hassleberry, and me too. Jim was with us and tagged along, so he's chilling in Sheppard's office too."

"I thought Jim and Hassleberry were still in the hospital," said Jaden, "When did Ms. Fontaine let them out?"

"While you were with Jesse dueling all day," said Syrus. The followed Atticus into Sheppard's office where Sartorius was sitting in front of the chancellor's desk.

"Found 'em, Chancellor," said Atticus, sitting next to his sister.

"Thank you, Atticus," said Sheppard, smiling. "Now I'm sure you're all wondering why I called you all here. I assure you, you've done nothing wrong. I'm sure you remember Sartorius, Aster Phoenix's manager. A wonderful opportunity has opened its doors, but I'd like him to share with you." He sat down behind his desk as Sartorius stood, pulling an envelope from his inner pocket.

"What's up this time, Sartorius?" Jaden asked, "Do I get to save the world again?"

"Why so eager to find something evil to vanquish, Jaden?" Sartorius shook his head, "Nothing like that exactly. I'm sure you all have been very involved in your studies here, or, as Professor Viper pointed out to me, involved in plenty of dueling…" His eyes shot a side-glance at Viper, who was leaning against the wall in the corner of the room, arms folded against his chest, looking like someone had told him Christmas had been cancelled. "…How closely have you been following the Pro Circuit?"

"I watch it occasionally in my room," said Atticus, "But it's been a couple of days since I turned on the TV. We've all been busy with Professor Viper's survival duels."

"We don't even get cable in Slifer," Jaden frowned, "Only what I read in magazines."

"Recently, the Pro Dueling networks have been airing various documentaries on dueling, and even memorable dueling specials from the Kaiba Dome. It turns out next week is the tenth anniversary of the Kaiba Dome, and just before the grand opening of the stadium was the beginning of the Professional Leagues. Next Saturday there is to be a grand dueling exhibition to commemorate the stadium, and all of the big names in the Pro Circuit will be in attendance, most of them dueling."

"That sounds sweet! Who's going to be there?" Jaden asked.

"Practically every duelist who's gateway to fame emerged from the stadium. There are also rumors of surprise guests, but there have been no confirmations on those either."

"Will my brother be dueling?" Syrus asked, "I haven't seen Zane in a televised match in a long time."

"Yes, he will be in attendance. I am almost positive he will duel, but that has yet to be confirmed. As the reigning champion, Aster will also be there, and that brings me to why I am here." He handed the envelope to Chancellor Sheppard, "I have enclosed tickets to the exhibition for all of you. You can consider it a vacation from the island, as well as an extended thank-you for your help during last term."

"Y-you mean…we get to go to the Kaiba Dome…on one of the biggest nights for dueling in history!" Chazz's jaw dropped.

"Think of all the professionals that will be there!" Jaden cried, "Maybe I might be able to score a duel with one of them! Oh, man, to go up against a high-ranking duelist!"

"I have also arranged travel and accommodations for you for the entire week leading up to the event. I'm sure in these dark times for dueling; it would certainly cheer up Aster knowing that there won't just be his rabid fans attending his match."

"We get to see Aster duel too? Who's he up against?" said Alexis.

"It was planned in advance for Maxwell Simmons to rematch Aster for the championship title, but, due to the recent tragedy, Kaiba Corporation is keeping the opponent a secret. In organizing the event, Seto and Mokuba Kaiba have been _very _selective on the information leaked to the public. I'm sure Aster would appreciate the time to spend with his friends and have a break from his rather... _crazy _dueling schedule."

"We get the _entire week_ in Domino!" Jaden jumped off the couch, "Yes!"

"Now, just a moment," Viper pushed himself off the wall and walked up to Sheppard, "You can't possibly agree to this, Chancellor. We're talking about letting everyone in this room run free from Duel Academy for an entire week, pushing schoolwork and their mandatory duels aside. How do you think the rest of campus will fare, knowing that the top students in this school get a free vacation, while the rest of the school continues as normal? These students are not cut above the rest!" _These students are my main donors of duel energy! Allowing them to leave would set back my plans for possibly weeks. _He glared down Sartorius.

"Well, that is true," Sheppard frowned, "I'm afraid I can't allow you to leave the island for pure recreation, unless of course, there was something educational about it."

"Of course, Professor Viper raises a valid point," Sartorius side-glanced at Viper, ignoring the hard looks coming back at him, "However, Chancellor, you must also realize that the majority of students at Duel Academy, and their sister sites, plan on entering the Pro Circuit after graduation. Live exposure to professional dueling will open these students' eyes."

Viper rolled his eyes, "Please. Open them to what?"

Sartorius gave him a hard look, "As a member of the Leagues, I see it far too often. Top graduates ruin their careers on their first professional duel because they can't handle the pressure of such standards. Professional dueling is nothing like school. You are constantly tested, and more often than not, top-rate duelists sink to the bottom. Watching the best in action could be what these students need: to know if they have what it takes to enter the League."

Viper scowled.

Sartorius smirked, "Besides, they might aspire to do even better during your 'performance tests' after next week is through. By stepping up their game, they will inspire other students to do so as well, and that would improve _all_ of Duel Academy."

"I think I've heard all I needed to hear on this matter," said Sheppard, "Giving our top students exposure to real-world experience is an excellent idea, and the knowledge they bring back should have a positive impact on the entire island."

"If you excuse me, Chancellor," said Viper, his voice dripping with venom, "I have some performance tests to review…."

Sartorius waited for the doors to hiss shut after him before sinking back into the chair next to Sheppard's desk. "I am not fond of that man…."

"That's alright," said Jim, "We don't like him either."

"Educational enrichment is _not _the main reason I've asked you to Domino, a week before the exhibition event." Sartorius sighed, his voice much more serious than before, "I fear Aster is in danger."

"What do you mean, danger?" Hassleberry leaned forward in his seat, "What's wrong?"

"I'm sure you're all aware of the professional duelists that are disappearing left and right…," Sartorius shook his head, "After someone planted a small explosive at his home, I could tell he's been on edge. Aster's become very secretive. We've been staying at Serena's home outside of Domino to avoid the public eye, but he's been spending quite a lot of time at Kaiba Corporation. I've asked him about it, but he claimed it was about the upcoming celebration at the Kaiba Dome."

"Has he ever been this secretive before?"

Sartorius shook his head, "I'm sure after the Light fiasco, he might have lost some trust in me, but he's never shown it. And that's not the worst of it…." He looked away.

Jaden frowned. _I'll be honest. The most I've usually seen Sartorius was when he was dueling, even though he was being controlled then. For someone who can predict destiny, this guy is awfully worried. Something bad_ must _have happened._

"Aster's recent turn of events worry me. On top of that, I…I've been having visions again."

"I thought you couldn't get those anymore because that freaky alien was gone?" said Hassleberry.

"The Light of Destruction was destroyed; it can no longer fully control me, but I'm afraid there's still a small part of left. I haven't been able to predict the future as I could before, but it doesn't stop me from having those visions."

"What did you see?" Chazz asked.

"The visions themselves haven't been crystal clear, but they explicitly show Aster in a great deal of trouble…," he paused for a moment before adding softly, "all leading up to his death."

Jaden quickly stood up, "We can't let that happen. It won't happen!"

"I need you to go to Domino, if anything, to keep him company. I am almost positive that something terrible is to happen to him soon. The visions keep repeating themselves more and more. If anything, I'm afraid someone may try something during the exhibition next Saturday."

Atticus frowned, "Have you tried talking to him about this?"

Sartorius shook his head, "I've tried, but I feel that he's been avoiding me. I wanted to talk to him two days ago after his last visit to Kaiba Corporation, but he arrived home late that night, and rather tired, so I decided to wait until morning. However, he had gone somewhere early, and I missed him. I have no idea where he went, but he didn't return last night. Serena told me he had called and said he wouldn't return until sometime later today. And now I'm here."

"What about safety?" Sheppard asked, "Have you spoken to him about bodyguards?"

"No. I could tell that the recent events have him spooked. I don't want to cause him more pain before his duel next Saturday, as he will have to defend his championship title. However, I feel that the threat of him disappearing will diminish if there are people with him. There is safety in numbers. I know Aster would refuse the aid of bodyguards, but he would never turn down his friends."

"What about having Aster stay here on campus for the next week?" Sheppard asked, "Unless a possible attacker was already on the island, it would be near impossible for anyone to bring him harm."

"I did think about that," said Sartorius, turning to face Sheppard, "But then I remembered Professor Viper's stipulation. If it was not apparent, I am _not_ a fan of these performance tests. Personally, I would never subject anyone to serious daily dueling conditions. A serious duel everyday would probably tire him out by next Saturday."

"The duels aren't that bad though," said Syrus, "Aster shouldn't have a problem dueling once a day. He could probably beat about everyone…and anyone."

"You forget, Viper is monitoring the duels," said Jim, "he probably considers a serious duel for one of us being a Slifer against an Obelisk. He would probably change his standards for someone of Aster's achievement. Under those conditions, a serious duel then could be him against someone like Zane Truesdale, or another high-ranking professional."

Sartorius nodded, "That is why I didn't bring up the possibility with Professor Viper in the room. I would rather have him comfortable, surrounded by friends in a relaxing environment, than here treated as an experiment, especially since his role as a student here is at the barest minimum." He stood up, "if you choose to come early next week, everything you need to know is with the envelope in Chancellor Sheppard's hands.

"But for now, I'm afraid I must return to the city, and try to weasel some information from my extraordinarily stubborn friend. On another note, Aster has no idea I have invited you to the exhibition games. If anything, he is in for a pleasant surprise." He headed for the door, "There is no need to walk me out, Chancellor. I'm sure you have much to explain to your students. I know the way."

"Thank you, Sartorius," said Sheppard. He turned to the others as the manager left the room. "Now I'm sure you all want to leave the island early – and there's no need to look so excited, Jaden." Sheppard counted the number of tickets in the envelope, and did a head count, "There appears to be just enough for all of you. A boat will arrive to take you to Domino City early Sunday morning, and pending everything running smoothly, you'll arrive back here next Sunday night. There are hotel accommodations included here as well."

He put the information down and gave the students a long, hard look. "Obviously, the purpose of this trip is just as personal as it is educational. If you must share the details of leaving next week, for the sake of Aster's, and Sartorius' privacy, do not reveal any personal information. You were invited to the exhibition event as a favor from Sartorius, and as far as I'm concerned, that's all that needs to be said."

* * *

_One day earlier _

Aster looked at the address Mokuba Kaiba had scribbled out to him, and then to the building in front of him.

_Flashback_

_Aster walked out of Seto Kaiba's office, feeling slightly better than he did when he walked in._

"_Wait, Phoenix!"_

_He turned to see Seto Kaiba walk up to him. "Something is obviously bothering you and I'll bet it has _everything _to do with what's been happening these past few days."_

_Aster jammed his finger into the elevator button, "What gave it away?"_

"_I know if you jabbed that button any harder, you'd have broken the elevator, like I did last week, as Mokuba found it so important to remind me. Look, whatever wrong, you need to talk about it before you have a meltdown in a duel– and I don't mean with me. I will admit I'm not the best with advice, but I know someone who has been through it all. Here's his address. Last time I checked, he still lives there. But if he doesn't, whoever does will point you in the right direction. Believe me, no matter how crazy something is you need to get off your chest, this guy will believe you. Like I said, he's been through _everything_."_

_Aster took the slip of paper and his eyes nearly bugged out of his head, "You want me to see _him?_!"_

_Seto nodded, "You'll be surprised how much you two have in common."_

_End flashback_

Aster straightened his suit and adjusted his tie. _This feels extremely awkward, but if _Seto Kaiba _says this guy will help me, he's gotta be right…. _He walked around to the side of the building, away from the back entrance, and knocked hard on the door to the house.

After a moment, the door opened. The man smiled, "Wow. It's not often a champion duelist comes to find me without a duel disk."

Aster smiled meekly, "While it would be an honor, I'm not here for a duel. Seto Kaiba said you could give me some advice, because I could sure use some right now."


	9. Chapter 9

Happy Halloween, dear readers!

Disclaimer: See previous chapter.

* * *

Chapter 9

"_This is Bridgett Tremaine with this evening's troubling dueling news. The search is over, ladies and gentlemen. After days of relentless searching, Vyctoria Hign was found by the Domino Pier. According to an initial examination, she appeared to have been poisoned, but authorities are waiting for an official autopsy result to be done tomorrow. We recall that two other duelists had disappeared around the same time – Clyde McDowell and Scott Jenkins. Unfortunately, they have also turned up at the Pier. These two, however were found with their Duel Disks on, but their decks were missing with both of their necks slashed. Police are assuming at the moment that the deaths of McDowell and Jenkins are unrelated to Hign and the others. _

"_Along with the bodies at the Pier, a letter was found with Hign. Police have not yet disclosed the contents, but there are rumors it involves another duelist disappearance. On the positive, there have not been any more reports of missing Pro League duelists in the past three days, but one can definitely see a change in the world of dueling. Since Maxwell Simmons' disappearance, security at the Kaiba Dome alone has tripled, and extra precautions are taken during any duel. Aside from security checkpoints at the entrances to the building _and _the arena itself, there are now guards circling the edge of the dueling field itself. Most of these provisions had been placed for the safety of the duelists, especially with the upcoming anniversary of the Dome next week. Many are speculating that the disappearances are not yet over and that those responsible are waiting until the big event Saturday to make their next move…"_

Seto Kaiba turned off the office television, and using a pair of tweezers, placed a small screw onto an equally small microchip. He didn't look up when Mokuba walked in and placed several files on his desk. "What are you working on, Seto?"

Seto put down the tweezers and sighed, "A request for someone." He looked over at the folder. "What have you dug up?"

"We went back and looked at the dueling records of everyone who had died so far. Apart from McDowell and Jenkins, all of the others had at least one run-in with Thorn Turama, and from the news a week or so ago, he had escaped from prison along with a bunch of other dueling criminals. They haven't been caught yet, but there _is _a pattern."

Seto drummed his fingers against the desk, "Well?"

"The duelists are being murdered based on Thorn Turama's losing streak – in reverse. First was Katie since she dueled last, and before her was Maxwell Simmons. There were a few others between Maxwell Simmons and Vyctoria Hign, but those guys retired from the Leagues a few years ago. I guess if Turama _is_ behind this, he's only interested in the ones that are still dueling."

"So, based on that assumption, who is going to be the next victim? It's been days since someone disappeared, and that's odd considering someone usually vanishes the same time someone else turns up."

Mokuba frowned, "If we follow the reverse-losing streak pattern, crossing out duelists who are no longer in the Leagues, then the next victim would be Priscilla Iwukasa. However, she's practically on her way out of the Leagues after her tenth record loss. Plus, her victory over Turama wasn't as big of a gap compared to Maxwell Simmons, who obliterated Turama in less than six turns. If we skip over her, then the only one left is Aster Phoenix."

Seto looked up, "Phoenix? He's been in the city for weeks now. Not that I'm complaining, but shouldn't he have disappeared by now if he's next?"

Mokuba shrugged, "It doesn't make sense to me either, as it breaks the pattern. But, on the other hand, Aster Phoenix hasn't been making a lot of appearances since his last return from Duel Academy. If anything, they could be waiting for the big turnout on Saturday. Or he's not a target at all."

"Doubtful," Seto leaned back in his chair, "They set off explosives at his house. Not strong enough to do extreme damage, but it was enough to make it a threat and a warning."

Mokuba sighed, leaning against the desk, "So what now? We've already beefed up security at the Dome, what more is there to do?"

"I'm positive Phoenix is aware of the threat against him, and he was here to see me two days ago. We're taking the necessary precautions."

"I hope it's enough," said Mokuba, "By the way, isn't that the "KC" emblem that was on your trench coat? Why'd you take it off?"

"Just tinkering with it, Mokuba, but I have a new task for you. You did a good job on digging up on Turama, so here. I want you to run a complete background check on these people," he handed his brother a list of names, "These men are going to be Phoenix's bodyguards the instant he enters the Kaiba Dome Saturday. If there's even a _shred _of indecency in any of them, I want them yanked and replaced with someone else."

Mokuba smiled, "No problem, Seto, I'll have this done real soon!" He jumped up and hurried out of the office.

Seto picked up the tweezers again and screwed the back plate onto the device. Pushing the button on the front of the "KC" chip, he watched as a program opened up with a map of the city. A red dot appeared over the image of Kaiba Corp headquarters and began to blink at the same rate as the device in his hand. He pressed the device again and the blinking stopped, both on the screen, and in his hand. Seto placed the finished chip in his desk, and pinned his own, identical communicator to the front of his tie. Swiveling around in his chair, he gazed out, surveying the city below from his bird's eye view. Glancing quickly back to the drawer, he spun around and pushed the button on his phone for his secretary.

"_Yes, Mr. Kaiba?_"

"Schedule an appointment with Aster Phoenix for a duel disk inspection before Saturday. I don't want anything malfunctioning during the Dome's 10th Anniversary."

* * *

"I, uh, hope I'm not inconveniencing you by stopping by like this," said Aster, feeling very out-of-place.

"It's no problem at all. You said Kaiba sent you, hm? He wouldn't send anyone here unless it was important, and I can tell you're troubled about something, so come on in."

Aster hesitantly took a step inside and looked around. He was led into a cozy living room with a large TV in the corner, replaying one of the infamous duels of the Battle City tournament. On the shelf above was a duel disk from Battle City.

"Sorry," said the man, pausing the DVD, "Just watching some old memories. I had no idea that these duels were recorded. Kaiba must have had cameras set up all over the city."

"I remember The D had me watch the Battle City series to help me train for my first pro duel," said Aster, glancing at the screen. It had paused as Yugi stared up at Slifer the Sky Dragon, while inside Nightmare Steel Cage. "You guys were legends back then."

He gestured Aster to sit down, "As Pegasus told me at a party a few years ago, we still are. Duel Monsters didn't officially take off until the Duelist Kingdom tournament. And soon after that, Kaiba started the Battle City tournament. The rest is history…." He remained relatively short; his large violet eyes seemed unchanged throughout the last ten years. With age his voice had deepened slightly, never matching up to the extent of the Pharaoh when he had taken control. "You know," he began, "I almost didn't answer the door just now. You aren't the first professional duelist to come to my door. Then again, practically all of them were demanding duels, and I left that spotlight years ago."

"Why?" Aster leaned forward from his spot on the couch, "It can't be age, plenty of the Pros today are a lot older than the both of us. You didn't need to retire from dueling."

Yugi gestured to the screen, "I was dueling for a purpose those years ago. And I fulfilled that purpose. In fact, when it was all over, I did continue for a little bit, but I'll admit, it just wasn't the same. When the Leagues started up, Kaiba did ask if I wanted to participate. Mokuba even invited Joey Wheeler after I refused, hoping that if he accepted, I would reconsider. But we both declined. I'd rather live a much quieter life than in my high-school days. I still read up on what's going on in the dueling world every now and then, and believe me; I see how the top-rated duelists are stalked constantly by the media, and not to mention the fans. I would never be able to put up with that. Besides, look at yourself now. You're filling the shoes of your former guardian as the Circuit Champion. You're mobbed for autographs and interviews all the time. After what I've witnessed over the years, I wouldn't be able to deal with the constant attention. Here, it's just me, my grandfather, my friends, and the card shop." He sat on the opposite couch, directly across from Aster, "But you didn't come here for that. You say you need some advice, and I'm all ears. I've been through some _pretty weird _stuff, so what's on your mind? Kaiba doesn't send just anyone to see me, you know."

Aster reached into his jacket and pulled out a letter, "You said you've been following up on what's been going on, so you must know about the missing pro duelists."

Yugi nodded, "Most unfortunate. To think a duelist can be so corrupt that he must enact his revenge in such a way."

Aster passed the letter across the table, "This arrived for me two days ago. It was in my mailbox at my mansion. Someone knew I had been spending time there, even though I'm technically not supposed to start living there again until repairs are done, to leave this there with no postage or return address."

Yugi unfolded and read the letter, "This implies that you're the next target. Is that what you're worried over?"

"Not as much as I am something else." Aster sighed, "Last year, due to my manager Sartorius's request, I enrolled at Duel Academy and dueled Jaden Yuki, one of the school's top students. He used me to test Jaden's strength, all for his personal gain. Turned out Sartorius was being brainwashed by this crazy alien called the Light of Destruction, and it allowed him to vividly predict the future. When he got hold of some guy's satellite, he tried to take over the world with it. But somehow the goodness in him managed to win over for a short time, and gave the keys to the satellite to both myself and Jaden, and told us to protect them from him." He glanced up, "You must think I'm nuts, talking about aliens and stuff."

Yugi quickly shook his head, "No, I'm no stranger to mind-control. In fact, I've seen it in action far too many times. Please, continue."

Aster sighed, "I knew there was still good in Sartorius, and I tried to duel him, to break him free of whatever control the Light had on him. In order to duel him, I had to wager my satellite key, and in the end, the Light was too strong, and I lost the duel." He clenched his fists tightly against his knees, "In order for Jaden to hand over _his _key, Sartorius kidnapped and used me as a bargaining chip. If it hadn't been for Jaden…." He looked away.

"This alien, is it still around?" Yugi placed the warning letter back on the table.

"It shouldn't be, since Jaden defeated it at the end of last term. But I've began to notice things, and he even told me that part of the Light was still inside him. He assured me that it can't control him again, but…."

"The fact that it's there bothers you," Yugi finished.

Aster nodded, "After practically being attacked by the Light at the end of our duel, I suppose you could say I've developed some kind of sixth sense, or at least a bad feeling about it. And these past few weeks, I've had a lot of 'bad feelings' about Sartorius. He promised me he wasn't using his tarot cards to predict the future anymore, but at this point, I'm not sure anymore. If the Light _is _getting stronger, there's no telling if Sartorius will be able to keep it under control. It took Jaden and me everything we had to get rid of it the first time, and I don't think we'd be able to do it twice. I've been staying away from him the past couple of days, just to keep my head clear, but if the Light took control now, with everything going on, I don't think I could rally the old Sartorius out of it. The Light of Destruction would come back probably stronger, and the whole world would be in danger – again."

Yugi smiled sadly, "Believe it or not, I've been in this type of situation before. Sometimes, you and your friends at Duel Academy remind me of my high school days, always off on some sort of adventure or saving someone from something evil. This time, it was in the middle of a duel, and we were losing badly. The person I believed in most to do the right thing turned completely against his principles just to get the upper hand in the game. In the end, his monsters turned against him, and I paid the ultimate price. The fate of the world was at stake, and his momentary lust for power cost us the game – and more. After it happened, I couldn't trust him either, but in time, I had to believe in him to learn from his mistake and do the right thing."

"What happened?" said Aster.

"In the end, he had truly regretted what he had done. He apologized, and through teamwork, we saved mankind. But it wasn't easy, and there was a lot of soul-searching involved. But there's something you can do that I couldn't in our similar situations."

Aster raised an eyebrow, "What's that?"

"Talk to him. You need to let him know how you feel. Until he did some soul-searching, I was powerless against his decisions, but, while this evil spirit is dormant, you need to confront your friend about this. He may not realize what's happening, and that could be the only problem. By avoiding each other, you could be creating a bigger problem. This could be something he's wanted to share with you. If the Light is fueled by emotion, avoiding your manager and causing him worry might escalate this alien's control. My advice to you is to find Sartorius and have a long, talk. After what you've told me about last year, he still needs to earn back your complete trust, and by not communicating with him, he might also be losing trust in you as well. Not to mention, with the danger placed on you at this point in time, you don't want your closest friend to turn against you. Believe me, when I had a large burden put on me, even during the Battle City tournament, it was next-to-impossible to fight my best friend, who was being brainwashed by an evil force."

A sudden ringing nearly made Aster jump a foot in the air. Reaching into his suit, he pulled out his phone, "Sorry, excuse me for a sec," he walked out into the next room, "Hello?"

"_Aster?_"

"Sartorius? What's up?"

"_Don't 'what's up?' me, Aster. Where on Earth have you been!_"

"Oh…eh, around…something up?"

"_What do you mean, is something up? I've been trying to reach you for _two days_! There's something I've been wanting to discuss with you that's rather important to your duel on Saturday, and if you keep ignoring me, I'd rather not have to forfeit your participation in the biggest duel of your life."_

"You wouldn't do that…would you?"

"_Look, Aster, I need you to return. It's _imperative _we discuss this matter sooner than later. Please come back home."_

Yugi stood up and took the duel disk off the shelf, holding it in his hands and inspecting it as if he had received the device for the first time. He looked up as Aster walked back in a few moments later. "That was him, wasn't it?"

The pro duelist nodded, "Turns out he wants to talk to me about something…and wasn't too happy about me jumping ship the past couple of days."

Yugi smiled, "Then you should go find him and work things out."

Aster nodded, placing the threat letter back into his pocket, "He said it was urgent so…."

Yugi nodded, "I understand."

Aster stopped at the door, "I have to say, thank you. It was kinda nice to hang out with someone without a dueling deck nearby."

Yugi laughed, "Same here as well. Though I'm pretty sure our paths will cross again. Take care of yourself, Aster, and work things out with Sartorius."

He watched the sleek black car pull up against the curb and didn't turn back inside until the limo had turned the corner, heading out of sight. Closing the door, he walked back into the living room, and hit play on the DVD player remote. His eyes wandered to the end table next to the couch, where an invitation to the Kaiba Dome's 10th Anniversary event poked out from under a pile of mail. _You're a good kid, Aster, and a good duelist at that. Our paths _will _cross again….

* * *

_Finished this chapter rather late, and assuming I caught all the mistakes. If you find anything I might have missed, let me know!

Happy Halloween, dear readers! Candy corn for all!


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: See previous chapter.

* * *

Chapter 10

"Boss…there's something I don't understand," said one of the men in the corner, counting a pile of money under a dim lamp, "This whole setup is to get back at the Phoenix kid, right? What do you plan on doing?"

Thorn paused in leafing through his old Duel Monster cards, "We're going to have the duel we should have had all those years ago. The rematch I was denied."

"You're going to _duel_ the kid?" Jack raised an eyebrow, "No offense or anything, but you're a bit stale. The Phoenix kid is the _champion_. You haven't picked up a duel-disk in at least three years. You probably don't have the stamina to keep up with him."

"You're right. I haven't dueled in a while," Thorn nodded, "But I have a friend who's working on that little problem as we speak. In fact…by the time next Saturday rolls around, I should have _all_ the dueling energy I need…and who knows, maybe more. Once I win back my rightful title, I can re-enter the Leagues."

"There are still other dueling giants though," said Smith, "Like Truesdale."

"After destroying Phoenix, Truesdale won't be too much of a problem. After all, he couldn't beat our champion; if I can, Truesdale will be a breeze."

"What if you _don't _beat Phoenix?" asked Smith. "I mean…of course you will…but there's always the chance."

"A back-up plan is already in place," said Thorn, "Our mutual dealer Shroud was able to meet and give Truesdale an offer he can't possibly refuse. No matter how it turns out, I will be at the top one way or another." He placed his deck down and gave Jack a hard look, "Is everything ready for next Saturday?"

Jack nodded, "All set. Just give us the word and we'll collect for you."

Thorn grinned. "_Excellent_…"

* * *

Zane turned off the duel computer in the private match room of the Kaiba-Dome, scowling. Setting the computer to the maximum difficulty, and setting it duel using a deck of Destiny Heroes, and he still lost. Twice. _There _has _to be a way to do this._ He contemplated a third match, but then decided against it. The room reservation was going to run out soon anyways. Throwing the door open, he nearly plowed into the man he surely did _not _want to see at that moment.

"Trying to pick up dueling tips?" Zane scowled.

Shroud chuckled, "No, not with the way your game turned out. It was close; you got the computer down to what, 50 life-points?"

"What is it you want, Shroud?"

"I'm here to collect on my offer. Still looks like you're having trouble beating Phoenix…even a simulated one. I can help you, but in return you need to assist me."

Zane crossed his arms over his chest and stared down his former manager. "I believe I kicked you to the curb once before, Shroud. I didn't need you then. I don't need you now. I can and will defeat Phoenix on my own terms. Since dropping you, I've reworked my way up through the circuit, and no one who stands before me wins a match. Phoenix shouldn't be too different."

Shroud frowned, "If you're so confident, why don't you just face him already? Trounce him with the whole world watching like you know you want to. …Or is there something else holding you back?"

Zane scowled, "_Nothing_ is holding me back, Shroud. If you haven't noticed, Phoenix doesn't spend his time around the arena like he used to, to even confront him about a match."

Shroud chuckled, "Your plan is to wait to find the kid? If you haven't noticed, Truesdale, Phoenix's days are possibly numbered. If you want to get your last match in with him before something happens to the kid, perhaps you'd better arrange it with his manager. Oh! …Wait, that's right, managers are the ones who set up the deals for their clients, and wouldn't you know, you don't have one. Perhaps I should arrange the duel for you…"

Zane shoved Shroud against the wall. "One thing straight, Shroud: I am my _own _manager. I'll make my own arrangements to duel. And I certainly don't need you to fix my matches for me."

Spinning on his heel, he stalked off. Shroud muttered something under his breath, but he didn't expect Zane to be able to hear him.

The words made Zane suddenly freeze over inside, but he kept walking, deep in thought.

"_Don't wait too long, Truesdale, or there won't be a Phoenix to duel…and you won't be able to arrange _anything_ on your own then…."_

* * *

"About time someone decided to grace us with his presence," Sartorius called from the other room, as Aster closed the front door behind him, his insides suddenly freezing over.

Aster gulped. Something didn't seem right, and a bad feeling was eating its way through his gut. There was no way Sartorius could see him from Serena's study, and she was out shopping. How did he know it wasn't Serena who walked in through the door just now? He took a deep breath and walked into Sartorius's makeshift office. "How did you know it was me? I didn't say anything…."

Sartorius paused and frowned. "I-I didn't…somehow…I just knew." He shook his head, "I suppose it was a premonition." He gestured at Aster at the door, "I need to talk to you, Aster, and it can't wait any longer." With Sartorius's hand still outstretched, the door swung around and clicked shut.

Aster whirled around and tried the knob. "Sartorius…"

Sartorius's hand was shaking, his eyes wide, "Aster please…this is important, please sit down."

"Let me out, Sartorius."

"I'm sorry…but I can't do that, Aster."

"Sartorius…let me out!"

"I can't. What I have to say is important, and it cannot wait any longer!"

Aster kept his hand firmly on the doorknob, wishing he was not the only other person in the house. Any bit of calm he was trying to maintain flew out the window when he saw the familiar sight. Slightly crazed hair and wild eyes.

"Aster, _step away from the door_." The cold, forceful voice.

"Not until you get rid of that…that _thing_! I refuse to have a conversation with you until it's gone! You shouldn't have to lock me in a room just to talk and whatever you need to say doesn't need to be behind a front!"

"Aster…" the wild look left his eyes, "…I-I'm sorry, I don't know what came over me…but please, there is something important I need to discuss…."

Aster narrowed his eyes, "Mhmm. There was something I wanted to talk to you about too, but it seems my problem's already here. I don't want to talk with an alien; I want to talk to _you_. And until you unlock this door and return to normal, _nothing _else needs to be said." He crossed his arms, staying firmly at his spot at the door.

"I'm sorry," was the quiet reply. Sartorius covered his face with his hands. Aster noticed the wild hair return to normal. "I-I-I really am. I…I am trying…very, _very _hard to suppress this…"

Aster frowned, "I thought you said this bit of Light couldn't take over again." He sighed, "And I come back to find that…that _thing_ waiting for me."

Sartorius hung his head, "I didn't think it was possible…but…these…these urge…I have not had one like this before. Not since…well…"

"Not since last year when you used me for a bargaining chip," Aster jiggled the knob again. "Unlock the door, Sartorius."

Sartorius shook his head, "I think the Light is fueled by my emotions…you know how I try to stay…well…fairly calm and emotionless most of the time."

Aster nodded slowly.

"I _have_ been nervous about how exactly to go about speaking with you today. Perhaps…perhaps it took advantage of my...moment of weakness." He looked up at Aster, "I swear to you this won't happen again. I _need_ for you to be able to trust me." He paused, "That is why you've been absent hasn't it? You've probably sensed the uneasiness in me these past few days…."

"I think after all that I've been through with that alien last year, I've developed a sixth sense of whenever it decides to rear its ugly head." Aster looked away, "I've had enough to deal with than have to worry about that freak taking over you again. Let's face it, if that thing wants to take over the world again – or at least try to – you and I both know that there are at least two people it's going to want to take out first, and one of them is standing right here."

"That…that brings me to what I wanted to talk to you about," Sartorius sighed, "Please, Aster. Step away from the door and sit down. I promise – I don't bite."

"The Light's gone?"

"As gone as it can be right now." He waited for his star duelist and friend to sit before he continued, "I know by now you are aware of the threat against you, Aster…."

Aster raised an eyebrow, "Did the hole in my house give it away?"

"Aster, please. I'll get right to the point. I know you won't want to hear this…but I would _strongly prefer _that you _not _attend the Kaiba Dome event next Saturday."

"What!" Aster shot up, "Why? I'm _expected _to be there! I'm supposed to be dueling, remember?"

Sartorius raised his hand, and Aster sat back down, "I know how you feel, but, I have a _very _strong reason to believe something devastating is going to happen that night."

"Am I going to disappear?" Aster crossed his arms, "I face that threat every time I walk two steps away from this house. If you had your way, I'd be shut up here 24/7 because you're too worried the nearest shadow is going to grab me the minute I'm out of your sight."

"Aster…," Sartorius shook his head, "I know…I know I might seem overprotective, but understand, these visions…I cannot ignore them."

"You're having visions _again_? How do you know it's not the Light trying to fool you?"

Sartorius resumed staring intently at his lap, "These visions…they've been quite…what's the word I'm looking for…_repetitive_."

"And they're all about Saturday's big event?"

Sartorius shook his head, "_That _is uncertain. I am willing to bet that the events from the visions will play out from sometime on that date though. It is the perfect opportunity for someone to try and do you harm. It is quite possibly the biggest public event you will have or have been in attendance to, and there can be countless attack attempts. For your safety, I beg you to not go."

Aster blinked, "…what kind of visions were these? Surely you must think I can take care of myself, Sartorius! I've only eluded your ever-watchful eye for the past two days, and no one's tried to make a grab for me. These people obviously knew where I was because they sent me this letter to my house – which has been uninhabited for weeks." He slammed the envelope onto the desk, "Missing out on quite possibly the biggest duels of my career is pretty much of resignation from the Leagues. If these attackers, whoever they are, wanted to make a pass at me, why didn't they just shoot me or something while I was at my house. It's not like there's a grand security system in place. There's a giant tarp pretending to be a wall. You can't get much more secure than that."

Aster sighed, "Besides, I'm already taking precautions about Saturday. I have a duel-disk inspection with Kaiba Corp tomorrow, and the big man himself said he wanted to go through security arrangements at the Dome."

"'Security arrangements'?" Sartorius repeated, "Sounds like bodyguards. You despise suits."

Aster wrinkled his nose, "I know, but, on the bright side, if they're Kaiba's best, I don't think I have any worries."

Sartorius frowned, "The visions themselves are terribly devastating…I-I'd rather not have to take the risk."

Aster smirked, "Well, it's not exactly your risk to take, now is it? It's mine."

"Aster, please, come to your senses. How can you be sure you'll be absolutely safe? I don't know what I'd do if anything happened to you."

It was Aster's turn to stare down at his lap this time, before getting up, "You'll have to trust me when I said I'm taking all the necessary precautions. I can't hide from my career. If these people are serious about coming after me, they're not going to give up. And I can't stay behind shelters forever. Even if I don't go to the anniversary event, I'll have to go to the Dome sooner or later, or I'll lose my connections in the Leagues. There can be roaring crowds or just duelists aiming for a practice match, but the threat will always be there."

* * *

_Sartorius was turned away from him. His hands were up, covering his face like a shield. Aster stood behind, and hesitantly put a hand on his shoulder, "Sartorius?" _

_Once the hand touched the shoulder, he immediately felt his manager tense. His long hair flared out far worse than Aster had remembered. He couldn't see Sartorius's eyes. "What's wrong?"_

"_Why…_nothing_…nothing is wrong," said the cold voice. "In fact, everything is going _just right_…all according to plan." _

_Aster backed up a step, his blood running cold. He remembered that voice all too well. "S-Sartorius…"_

_Sartorius turned slowly around, "Your friend is gone. Now _I_ am in control of his body once again." As he completed his turn, a bright white light radiated from Sartorius, focusing on Aster and slamming him backwards into the nearest wall._

_Aster, momentarily dazed, tried to move, but found it impossible. Still struggling, he glared at the alien, "The real Sartorius is still in there, he can fight his way back. You didn't win last time, and you won't this time. I'll see to that."_

'_Sartorius', or, the Light flashed a greedy smirk. "I don't believe so, boy. Your friend has willingly surrendered himself to my use, and now I am free to continue what _you _and that other boy tried to stop. Soon the whole world will see The Light."_

"No one_ is going to see the light," Aster snapped, "We beat you once, and we'll do it again. I won't let you reign control over my friend."_

_The Light laughed, "As if you can stop me. I remember you, how you tried to save your friend the last time. It was a valiant effort, indeed, but you were too weak. I am stronger now than _ever_ before, so do tell, how do you plan to stop me?"_

"_I don't have to do it alone. I was helped the last time, and they'll certainly do everything to stop you this time too!" Aster said fiercely._

_The Light grinned, "Oh, yes…that boy with the Neospacian monsters…he will still be a thorn in my side. But I don't have to face him at all. You are a formidable opponent to him, I remember. Why should I face him when I can have _you _do it for me?" He watched Aster pause in struggling against his control for a moment, allowing realization to dawn on him, before continuing, "Yesss, you will make a fine soldier for my bidding." _

_Aster pulled hard against the glowing white bonds, "Don't even _think _about it. I'll _never _join you."_

_The Light smirked, placing his hands on Aster's shoulders, ceasing his struggling. "You don't have a choice. Soon the entire world will see the Light. Society will be born anew, and _you_ will help me to open these blind peoples' eyes. I'm afraid, for you, Aster Phoenix, life as you knew it is over. It is time for you to see the Light!"_

Aster shot up as he kicked himself out of his dream. Staring up at the ceiling in the room, he took a few calming deep breaths before glancing at the clock. 2:51am, Sunday morning. He sighed, rubbing his forehead before climbing out of bed. On his way to the kitchen he paused outside Sartorius's bedroom door before moving on.

"Aster?"

He stopped in the doorway. Serena was sitting at the table, a fresh teapot before her. "Are you always up this late?"

She smiled, shaking her head, "No, but it seems whenever I have trouble sleeping, I'm not the only one." She patted the seat next to her, "What's on your mind?"

Aster grabbed a teacup and sat next to her. "I don't know what to do anymore…."

She gave a small smile, "There seems to be a bit of that going around. What's on your mind, Aster?"

He poured himself some tea, "I'm worried about Sartorius." He looked at her, "Have you…I mean…have you sensed anything weird about him lately?"

Serena sighed, "He has been very worried lately, if that's what you're referring to."

"I mean the little buddy he picked up last year. The little buddy of his who ambushed me when I got back this afternoon."

Serena frowned. "Oh." Sighing, she took another sip, "He told me about that earlier. You're not the only one worried about it, Aster."

"It's not so much fear as it is downright horror!" Aster cried, getting up and pacing the kitchen, "We both know what that alien is capable of…and the fact that it nearly succeeded is even more worrisome. And to figure out that it's not even 'dead'…how much more can we take at a time like this!"

Serena watched him pace. _This is just like that other time, when Sartorius came down late that night…_. "I'm sure he's doing what he can to control it. This can't be easy for him either."

Aster paused to look at her, "I'm more worried about something happening to me, than the Light even retaking control over him."

"Aster, you can't mean –"

"He told me earlier that he thinks the Light is fueled by his emotions. What if something _did _happen to me, or even you? You can't expect him to be his normal calm and rational self. Think about it, if someone severely injured you, Sartorius may not go off the deep-end, but it might catch him off-guard enough for the Light to take advantage, and then the entire world is screwed."

Serena beckoned him to sit back down, and patted his arm, "Calm down, Aster. Things like that can't be controlled. We can only help what we _can _control. As long as this being inside Sartorius stays…mostly dormant within him, we must have faith that Sartorius can keep it under control. If not, then we'll just have to deal with it when, _and if_, the time comes." She stood up, taking the pot and placing it next to the sink. "Come, you should rest up. You've got an exciting week coming up. Saturday's going to be a big day."

Aster followed after her, but stopped at the top of the steps. "Where's Sartorius?"

Serena glanced at the open bedroom door. "…He…he had an errand to run, and said he would be back sometime in the morning. He also wanted me to request that you don't do anything reckless before he returns."

Aster sighed, "Figures. Well, I have a meeting tomorrow, but I'll try not to do anything stupid…at least not until I get back."

Serena smiled, "That's the spirit. See you in the morning."

* * *

"As I'm sure you've guessed already, security at the Dome on Saturday is going to be extremely tight," said Seto, "No ticket, no entry. There will be metal detectors in place at every entrance. Based on the letter you received…," he handed the envelope back to Aster, "And based on the similar one that found its way here last night, _you _will have at least two guards assigned to you."

Aster nodded, "I don't particularly like bodyguards, but I guess if it puts my manager at ease, I'll accept it."

Seto nodded, "Your manager Sartorius and I have arranged that after opening remarks and duelist introductions, you'll go to Duelist Prep Room #2."

Aster blinked, "I don't think I've ever used one of those rooms. I've always hung around just behind the arena watching the matches."

"There's a TV in the prep room that allows you to see what goes on in the arena. You'll have a guard outside the door, and one inside, if you wish."

Aster nodded, "That's fine. It'll make Sartorius happy."

"Sartorius requested you stay in the prep room until your first duel..."

"Do I even get to know _who_ I'm dueling?"

"No one knows who their opponent will be except for the feature match. Or, as Sartorius probably told you, the largest duel of your career. Your opponent knows they are to duel you, but that's it."

"Is it that big of a secret?"

Seto shook his head, "No, your opponent simply likes to keep out of the spotlight. Your 'big match' will be the last one of the night, after all of the surprise match-ups and other events of the night. By then, the hype of the evening will be at its peak, and you'll hopefully get out of the building with both your eyesight and hearing intact."

"So I wait around in the prep room until I'm announced?"

Seto nodded, "The guards have been instructed of the order and match-ups ahead of time. They'll escort you to the backstage entrance to your side of the arena as the match ahead of yours begins. When your duel is over, you'll return to the prep room."

"Am I the only one who gets the special treatment?"

"All of the duelists get the same type of schedule as yours. When they arrive, they'll be put in prep rooms with their possible upcoming opponents. You'll get your own room, Sartorius's request."

"_Hey! What are you doing there!"_

Seto peered around Aster sitting in front of his desk to the closed door. They could hear a scuffle and people running down the corridor.

"There a marathon going on in the executive offices?" Aster asked, raising an eyebrow. They were both staring at the door now.

Seto narrowed his eyes, then jabbed the button on the office phone, "What the hell is going on out there!"

"_Sir, Roland found someone eavesdropping outside your office door, he was dressed like a security guard. I believe they're talking to him in the security office."_

Aster turned around in his seat to stare at the office door. "Someone was listening in on us?"

Seto scowled, "This might take longer than expected." He buzzed the phone again, "When is my next appointment?"

"_One hour from now. Mr. Mu—"_

"Reschedule it for the next available time today."

"_But sir! Mr. Pegasus is coming to talk about the 10__th__ Anniversary Event after that time!"_

"Move Pegasus to tomorrow's first available time slot."

"_Yes, sir…"_

"And have that man escorted up here. I want to talk to him."

_Yes, Mr. Kaiba._"

"Eh…should I leave?" Aster shifted in his seat, "I can come back later…."

Seto shook his head, "No. We still have to inspect your duel-disk, and because of this…annoyance…arrangements for Saturday will have to be changed. It's easier to just sit through this interruption. Besides, this eavesdropper might be someone you know."

Aster frowned, "I don't think anyone I know would be _able_ to disguise themselves as a guard and make their way up here without getting caught along the way."

Seto reached into his desk and pulled out a folder. "I want to know who managed to slip through security and get all the way up here without _anyone _noticing. There are at least two security stations between the elevator and this office."

They could hear shuffling in the hallway before someone knocked on the door. Roland poked his head into the office, "Mr. Kaiba, we've brought up the man from earlier."

Seto nodded, "I want to talk to him."

"Yes sir." The door opened wider, as Roland and one other security guard led the man into the office. He was dressed similarly to the other Kaiba Corporation security guards; Aster could see how he might have slipped past one of the checkpoints.

One of the guards took the chair next to Aster, moved it towards the door and sat the man in it.

"We were going to have him escorted out, Mr. Kaiba, until you wanted him brought in here," said Roland.

Seto picked up the file and stood in front of the stranger, making comparisons from the face before him to the photographs in the file. "You're a rather smart guy to have been able to sneak yourself all the way up here. Just what _were _you doing eavesdropping outside my office?"

The man shrugged, "Listening."

Aster studied the man's face. "I've seen his face somewhere." Both Seto and the man turned to face him. "I don't remember where…."

"He put up quite a fight in the security office," said Roland, standing behind the chair.

Seto handed the folder to Aster, "See if you recognize him." He turned to Roland, "Have you checked the employee files?"

The head of security nodded, "He's not an employee. He managed to forge an ID pass to get to this point of the building. We checked against the other offices in the building, and no one had an appointment with this man's description. He still hasn't told us his name."

Aster got up, stood in front of the man and leafed through the papers in the folder, eyeing back and forth photographs in his hand and the man in front of him. Halfway through, he paused. "I think…I think this is the guy. He looks like the man in this photograph."

The man eyed Aster as he stepped between him and the desk, passing one of the photographs to Seto.

"'Zardon Smith'," one of the guards read the name under the photograph, "Are you sure this is the man, Mr. Phoenix?"

"_Phoenix_?" said Smith, eyeing the teen next to him as he nodded at the guard, "_You're _Aster Phoenix?"

Aster slowly turned to look at him. "Positive. That's him alright."

"Should we escort this man out, Mr. Kaiba?" asked the other guard.

"Contact the prison, we found their missing lackey…at least, one of them."

"After the struggle the man gave in the security office, the police have already been called," said Roland.

Smith turned his head slightly, looking out from the corner of his eye. Both Roland and the other guard were directly behind his chair.

"We tried to question him, but he wouldn't say anything, except with his fists."

"Why were you listening at the door?" said Seto, "You and your buddies are card thieves, and there's nothing of interest to your gang in this building."

Smith turned slowly to stare at Seto, "On the contrary, there is indeed something of interest here. You obviously know, or _knew_, what I was up to…and there are two people…_in this room_ even, with one-of-a-kind cards. On one side, you haven't dueled in years, but you're still the only man on this planet with all three _playable _Blue-Eyes White Dragons."

Seto crossed his arms, "If you're looking for those, you won't find them in here."

Smith turned to the person who seemed to be frozen next to him. "Then there's someone with an entire _deck_ of one-of-a-kind cards…someone my employer is _most_ interested in." Smith's eyes then widened, as if he realized he said something he shouldn't have. He suddenly found drumming the arm of his chair most interesting, keeping at least one eye on the teen next to him.

The phone on the desk buzzed. Aster, glancing over to see who answered the phone, took his guard off of Smith.

Taking advantage of the distracting telephone and before the guards could keep him forced-down in his seat; he lunged forward, catching the young duelist in a tight choke-hold. Smith glanced quickly at the office door before turning back to the guards, ignoring Aster's attempts to get his arm off of his neck.

"The police will be here any moment, I suspect," said Smith, reaching into his suit, and pulled out a rather unnaturally sharp uncapped pen. "But I still have time to make it out. And to assure I make it out, I'm taking your prized champion with me."

"Let him go, Smith," Seto demanded. Both guards moved to block the door.

"I don't think so, Kaiba. My employer is most interested in this kid, and I intend to do my job. Now, if you or your lackeys intend to stop me…," he placed the sharp point of the pen against Aster's neck, "I'd rather not have to defy the boss, but I'll kill the kid right in your office." Tightening his grip on Aster, he dragged him towards the door. "Out of the way."

Roland looked at Seto for instructions, but before he could respond, Aster managed to pry the armed hand away from his neck, "Wait," he gasped out.

Smith glared down at him, "Quiet, kid."

Aster wedged an arm between his neck and the blade, "I said _wait_. …I'll go with you. Peacefully"

Everyone turned to stare at him. Smith didn't lax his grip, "What are you on about?"

Aster struggled against Smith's grip, "If by going to your boss saves the lives of anyone and everyone else in the Leagues, I'll go."

For a good minute, no one did anything.

Finally, Smith blinked, "I think that's the first time I've ever had a willing hostage…. Alright, kid. Let's go."

"_Wait_," Aster wrenched himself out of the choke-hold, but Smith maintained a firm grasp on his arm.

"_Now what!_"

"You and your band of buddies are thieves. You collect one-of-a-kind cards. Aren't you forgetting something?"

"We're not stupid, Phoenix. Your deck of cards will be collected later."

Not quite sure how to react to what was going on, Seto just stood behind his desk, with his arms folded across his chest as he listened to their conversation. He had seen plenty of hostage situations over the years, but none had the hostage act so calmly in the face of peril.

"Are you stupid?" Aster rolled his eyes and pointed with his free arm, "Why bother? My duel disk is right there on Mr. Kaiba's desk. You might as well just take it and be done with it."

Smith stared from Aster to the disk, and back to Aster again. "That's your disk?"

"That's my disk."

"And those are your cards in it?"

"They sure aren't Yugi Muto's."

"…Alright, then. Bring me the duel disk, Kaiba. But don't try anything dumb yourself…," he yanked on Aster's arm, twisting it behind him while pinning the duelist back into his original hold, "Or you'll be cleaning blood off of your nice polished floor."

Seto scowled, but kept his eyes firmly on Smith as picked up Aster's duel disk and made his way, slowly, to the middle of the office. He stopped just short of reaching Smith. "And how do you expect to walk out of here with both this and a hostage?"

Smith stared at the duel disk for a moment, and then slightly repositioned his hold on Aster, "Here," he relaxed his hold on Aster's left arm, "Put it on his arm. He's a duelist, it will look natural. Place it on him as if he was walking to a match…and _stop squirming, Phoenix_." He pushed the pen blade firmly against the side of Aster's neck.

Seto stepped forward to fasten the disk when he noticed Aster focusing rather intently in lining up his foot under his outstretched arm.

"Hurry it up, Kaiba. If you try to stall until the police arrive, it'll only quicken the kid's death."

Seto fastened the disk – rather loosely – and stepped back. Before Smith could make another move other than pulling back on Aster's arm, it lowered just enough for the disk to slide off, landing directly on Aster's foot.

Aster squeezed his eyes shut, wincing. He slid out on his other foot to get himself closer to the floor. On his way down he felt the knife scrape hard against his neck.

Smith's tight hold on Aster disappeared. He reached down to yank him back up again, but he didn't expect Aster to immediately whirl around and swing the duel disk into his stomach like a baseball player hitting a home run. Seto stepped between him and Aster as he doubled over in pain. The door to the office burst open moments later, two officers hurrying inside.

"Where were you two minutes ago when we needed you?" Aster muttered, slowly getting to his feet.

"This man is one of the escaped prisoners," said Seto, "He was found eavesdropping outside the office."

"Don't worry; we'll take it from here, Mr. Kaiba," said the first officer, "We apologize for any inconvenience he may have caused. Rest assured, this man will be locked back up immediately."

Aster glared at Smith, "He probably knows where his other friends are hiding. He told us he was working for someone. If I had to hazard a guess, his boss is Thorn Turama."

"Don't worry, Mr. Phoenix, we'll get everything out of him at the station," said the second officer, hauling Smith to this feet, and placing handcuffs on his wrists.

Once the officers led Smith out, with the extra Kaiba Corp security officer in tow, Aster hobble-hopped back to his chair.

"You've got some acting skills, Phoenix," said Seto, walking back around his desk to sit down again.

Aster glared back as he put his duel disk back on the desk, "Acting? _That hurt!_ That foot was just mended!"

Roland emerged from a side door in the office with a damp cloth, "Have you played baseball, Mr. Phoenix?"

"At some point I have. Maybe back when I was still in middle school…." Aster took the cloth and pressed it against his neck.

"Are you alright, sir?"

Aster nodded, "I think so. But I've got some advice for you...," he looked Seto right in the eye, "Don't make duel disks any heavier."

* * *

Smith sat in the back of the patrol car, scowling as he watched buildings zoom past the window. He raised an eyebrow as they passed the station. "Eh..."

"Quiet back there," the driving officer snapped.

"You past the police station. Some competent officer _you _are."

"What's your point?" The driver's voice was now completely different.

"…_Jack_?"

"The boss wasn't too pleased that you got yourself caught like an idiot. He expected you back a while ago."

"He'll forgive me when he hears the dirt I dug up…."

* * *

Aster stepped out of the car and walked up the path to Serena's home. He paused at the door, glancing down at his duel disk. _Within one month, I've been through hell. …A madman and a gang of dueling thugs escape from prison, someone finds it funny to blast a hole in my house, the Light of Destruction decides to make a comeback, and I nearly get myself killed like an idiot._ He placed his hand on the knob and sighed. _I don't know how much more I can take…._

The door had barely opened.

"I need to speak with you, Aster."

Aster sighed as he finished stepping inside and closed the door. "If that's the Light talking, I have nothing to say to him!"

"Aster, please. The Light isn't here. I'm in the living room. There is something new we need to discuss about Saturday's event."

The pro duelist took a deep breath, crossing the hall and stopping at the entrance to the adjoining room.

"You're late, Aster. We expected you back at least an hour ago."

Aster unconsciously rubbed the scrape on his neck, "…What do you mean by 'we'? And why are you in the dark?" He reached for the switch on the wall and flicked it on.

"_Surprise_!"

* * *

Another chapter done. Hope you enjoyed! More soon! Updates should come relatively quicker now that I'm writing this story out the same way as my Detective Conan story - in a notebook.

Until next time!


	11. Chapter 11

Happy Holidays!

Disclaimer: See previous chapter.

* * *

Chapter 11

Aster stood in the doorway, shocked as all of his Duel Academy friends came out of hiding. "W-where did you – _when _did you get here?"

Jaden grinned, "While you were out. Where were you anyway? Sartorius said you had a Duel Disk inspection, but you were gone for hours!"

Aster frowned slightly, "That's where I was. At Kaiba Corp. There were a few…delays…," he paused, taking a good look at his old rival, "Jaden…do you always wear that red Slifer jacket wherever you go? I mean, you're not at Duel Academy."

"I think it's an Academy regulation since school is still in session," said Alexis. She too was in her uniform, "Then again…that doesn't stop Atticus from dressing like he's on the beach."

Still slightly dazed, Aster sat down in an armchair, "What – what are you guys doing here? Surely you didn't sneak out just to say hello."

"I invited them," said Sartorius, sitting in a chair on the opposite side of the room, "You haven't seemed yourself lately so I allowed them to leave Duel Academy and help you to relax before the Kaiba Dome event on Saturday."

Aster slumped down in his seat, flabbergasted, "…Wow…Sartorius, you – you didn't have to do that. How did you even manage it?"

"He put Vipor in his place. It didn't take much to convince Sheppard," said Chazz.

"Aster," Sartorius began, "I know I may have seemed rather overprotective of you these past few days. I am just looking out for your safety."

Aster nodded, "…It's alright." He turned to the others, "…so…eh…where are you guys staying?"

"Sartorius booked us up in one of the nearby hotels. They didn't have the right number of rooms so one of us got a room of his own," Chazz said, then, rather stiffly, "I wanted it…but Jim took it."

Jim shrugged, "Sorry, mate. But no one else wants to room with Shirley."

"Enough sitting' around, soldiers!" Hassleberry jumped up, "On our way over, I saw a bunch of sights in Domino City I wouldn't mind visiting. Let's take a tour of the town!"  
Sartorius stood, "Go on," he said, "Don't limit yourselves. Tour the city and have fun. I'll be here if you need me for anything."

"Let me drop off my duel disk upstairs. I won't need it," said Aster, standing and heading towards the stairs.

Sartorius watched him with narrowed eyes as he left the room. "Is he…limping?"

Atticus craned his neck to peer out into the hallway, watching Aster climb up the steps. "…He is, not very much though. Looks pretty hard to tell, though."

Sartorius looked down, "I…I want you to keep an eye on him. Please, don't let him out of your sight."

Jaden nodded, "You can count on us."

* * *

"So what do you guys want to do?" Aster asked as they stopped at a street-corner.

"Doesn't matter to much to me," said Jim, "I think Hassleberry said there was some place he wanted to go see."

Hassleberry rubbed the back of his head, laughing nervously, "Well – I – err…not really…eh…Sartorius still freaks me out a lot."

Aster sighed, muttering, "You're not the only one."

Jaden's stomach gave a loud rumble, "Maybe a place where we can eat?"

Alexis pointed across the street, "There's a restaurant over there…."

"Race you!"

The waitress at the restaurant smiled as the group ran forward, "How many?"

Jaden took a head count, "Eight, I think."

"I'm surprised Slacker can count that high," Chazz muttered low enough for no one to hear.

"A private table please, if one is available," said Aster, looking around the place cautiously. The waitress nodded and led them to a large booth in the corner of the restaurant.

"So…," Atticus began as they all sat down, "What's the life of a pro like when he's not dueling?"

"Speaking of dueling, when was the last time you had a public match?" asked Hassleberry, "Haven't seen you on TV for at least a few weeks!"

Aster shrugged, "Not since the title match, I don't think. Sartorius used the cast as an excuse to keep my out of the Dome."

"But you've also been out of the cast for a few weeks now," said Jesse, "Still no dueling?"

Aster shook his head, "No. I've been lying low for a while. Sartorius purposely hasn't been setting me up with anyone." He glanced around the table at his friends, "Did Sartorius really get you guys or did you sneak out of school?"

"He came to get us," said Jaden, "Why?"

Aster sighed, leaning back in the booth, "He's…he's been – very – overprotective of me since we started staying with Serena. If I have to step out of the house and go somewhere without him, he thinks someone is going to jump out of the bushes and nab me."

The waitress came by and delivered a round of drinks. Once she was out of earshot, Syrus leaned in, "Are you in that much danger?"

Aster shrugged, "Depends on your view of 'a lot'. Let's review – a bunch of dueling criminals escape from prison. Someone blasts a hole in my house, and professional duelists are turning up dead. I'd say danger runs high for anyone in the Leagues right now."

Syrus gulped, "Even my brother?"

"Zane's been tearing up the competition in the Dome. If anyone was going to go after him, they'd have the perfect opportunity, but so far, nothing has happened. I'd say he's safe. Besides, he's the type of guy who can generally take care of himself. He's probably creaming duelists at the Kaiba Dome right now."

"Hey!" Chazz said suddenly, "What happened at Kaiba Corp?"

Aster raised an eyebrow, "Huh?"

Chazz pointed at the TV on the wall. "There, on the news."

They all turned to the television.

Aster frowned, "Oh, that. Someone tried to break their way into a restricted section of the building and got arrested."

"Is that why you were late earlier?" asked Syrus.

"You could say that."

Alexis frowned, "But that's not what the captions are talking about. It said the police were called to Kaiba Corporation, but the squad car that was dispatched never returned!"

Aster immediately frowned, "That's not good." _Great…just what I needed to hear. Criminal gets arrested and immediately escapes._

"I'm sure the car just got side-tracked. I'm sure there's nothing to worry about at all," said Jaden.

"Hey, Aster," Jim began, "I couldn't help but notice tension between you and Sartorius. I don't mean to pry but…"

"Is it that obvious?"

"Yea, it is," said Atticus.

Aster sighed, shaking his head, facing down at the table, "Sartorius is having visions again."

"Visions?" Hassleberry gasped, "Has he been looking at his freaky cards again?"

Aster shrugged, "I don't know where he keeps those cards. Sartorius hasn't made any mention that he still uses them. The only visions he's had are from dreams – or, at least, those he's told me."

"Then what's the problem?" asked Syrus.

"Turns out his little alien buddy isn't as gone as he thought it was."

Jaden's eyes widened, "You mean…The Light of Destruction is back?"

Aster scowled, "I don't know. It pretty much cornered me the other day when I got back to the house, but it's the last thing I need on my mind right now…which is why I'm glad you're here. …I need your help."

"You need our help?" Jesse asked, "What kind of help? And what's this Light of Destruction?"

"Long story short, Sartorius was possessed by a power-hungry alien called the Light of Destruction," said Chazz, "Under its influence, they pretty much brainwashed all of Duel Academy."

"Don't forget to include yourself under those brainwashed," Syrus muttered, "And that you helped convert most of the school yourself!"

"Shut up, half-pint!"

Hassleberry glared at the two before turning to Jesse, "That there alien had some sort of test between Aster and Jaden to figure out which one would defy destiny and be the bigger threat. In the end, there were two showdowns – a Private Phoenix versus Sartorius match and a Sarge versus Sartorius showdown to save the world!"

"So what happened?" Jim leaned in.

"The alien we thought was gone certainly is still alive and kicking. It nearly took over Sartorius the other day. He said it might be fueled by his emotions."

"But isn't Sartorius usually…kinda…emotionless?" asked Atticus.

"Exactly," Aster nodded, "normally, there's probably no issue at all, but these past weeks have him worried. And that alien is taking advantage of that. If something happened to me…" he looked away.

"We won't let that happen!" Jaden exclaimed, "Nothing is going to happen to you!"

"That's right!" Syrus chipped in, "The Aster Phoenix bodyguard squad is on the case!"

Aster turned slowly to face him, "…the _what_?"

Alexis sighed, face-palming, "Don't worry about it."

Aster leaned back, "I wish I could be as positive about this as you, but as far as anyone knows, no one in the Leagues is safe. I'm purposely being targeted and the exhibition matches on Saturday is a disaster waiting to happen."

"Why do you say that?" asked Chazz, "Wouldn't large crowds make it harder for some kind of an attack on anyone?"

Aster shook his head, "You'd like to think crowds and tighter security than an airport would be the answer, but…" he leaned in towards the others, "This stays _out_ of Sartorius's earshot, got it?"

He waited for them all to respond before continuing, "I was at Kaiba Corp today, getting my duel disk inspected before Saturday…"

"Do they do that for everyone before every match?"

Aster shook his head, "That was a story for Sartorius. What really happened was Kaiba went over security arrangements for Saturday. …Until things went downhill…"

Alexis gasped, "The intruder!"

Aster nodded, "He wasn't one of these random trespassers doing something stupid. This guy _knew _I was meeting with Kaiba about security at the Dome and was listening outside the door. He was also one of the escaped prisoners."

"But that soldier's been captured and sent back…to…oh man, he escaped!"

"Yea, he escaped all right – but not before finding out some very confidential information and causing a ruckus in Kaiba's office."

"So what happened?" asked Jesse.

Aster shook his head, "We'll just say that if the danger in the Leagues wasn't apparent before, it sure is now." He glanced around, "Can we go somewhere?"

"Ooh! Ooh!" Jaden jumped up, "Can we visit the Kaiba Dome? It'll be hard to get a good look around when there will be crowds of people!"

Aster shrugged, "Sure. It's not too far from here. Who knows – you might get to see some pros going at it."

* * *

"This place looks a lot bigger in person than on TV," said Alexis, "The arena must be huge!"

Aster nodded, "It is. There's enough space to have up to five tag-team matches going on at once."

"Come on, Sis, you remember, don't you?" said Atticus, "We had our entrance exams for Duel Academy there."

"The arena had to be rebuilt after the D's championship match last year," said Aster, "You can fit a lot more duels in there now." He led them through the entrance and down a side corridor.

"What's down here?" asked Chazz.

"It's sort of the back way into the stands. Spectators aren't generally veered down this way because a lot of the prep rooms are around here. There are also private dueling rooms that some people rent out for training matches and whatnot. When the Dome reopened, supposedly a Duel Computer was added to a renovated prep room. Apparently you can set the computer to duel anyone registered in the Leagues. I've never tried it though."

Jaden perked up, "You mean I could duel the King of Games if I really wanted?"

Aster shrugged, "You can give it a shot, but I think the computer only has registered League members…and Yugi Muto hasn't dueled publicly in years. The computer has everyone's deck stored in memory, but I've never used it to know who you can duel."

"So someone could be dueling you right now?" asked Syrus, "That's pretty neat."

"It is. I wanted to duel myself once or twice, but the room has been booked solid since the Exhibition was announced."

"I wonder who rented it out…" Hassleberry pondered.

Aster shrugged, "Who knows. I'm more curious about who my opponent is going to be. Sartorius hasn't been giving any clues about who it could be. All he said, and he told me this after I heard it from someone else, was that I wouldn't be dueling against Zane."

"But he's your biggest competition!" Jaden cried, "I don't see how anyone else can make a showstopper match! …You've beaten everyone, haven't you?"

"Eh, people join the Leagues all the time, but they won't pair me with a rookie in a publicity match – that's just cruel. All I know is Sartorius's word, which is that this will be the biggest duel of my career."

They pushed through the doors into the stands just as a duel finished up.

"Awww," Syrus pouted, "We missed it!"

They filed into a row of seats as the duelists left the arena.

"Don't worry about it," said Aster, "There's usually open dueling during the day. Another match should start soon." He leaned back in his seat and turned to the others. "So…how's life at Duel Academy?"

"Awesome!" Jaden grinned, "Dueling, fried shrimp, more dueling…what more could you ask for?"

"There's _plenty_ of dueling all right," Syrus sighed, "Too much dueling."

Aster raised an eyebrow, "Too much dueling? You do realize you go to a school that specializes in that sort of thing…."

Syrus shook his head, "It's not that. Professor Vipor is making us duel more and more – all for these personal assessment tests. It's a bad idea to have all of these nonstop matches. People are getting hurt!"

Aster frowned, "What do you mean?"

"Jaden was dueling Axel and they both collapsed right afterwards. And then Jim and Hassleberry were dueling and then immediately passed out," said Chazz, "We think it's from the bands that Vipor was making us wear."

"The bands?"

"It's like they're sucking out our energy after we duel," said Alexis.

"That can't be," said Aster, "I'm no scientist, but I'm pretty sure it's impossible to drain energy from someone. It's not like you're getting the blood sucked out of you like a vampire."

"It these bands doing the energy-sucking," said Jesse, "You feel all worn out after a duel, and depending, sometimes it takes a while to get back on your feet again."

"I know I've said it before," said Syrus, crossing his arms and sighing, "But can you really trust a guy named Vipor? It just screams villain! I mean, in our first year, we had the Shadow Riders. Last year, it was Sartorius and the Society of Light. It wouldn't be a year at Duel Academy without some crazy person taking over the world! …Or at least causing trouble."

Aster held his hands out, "Okay, okay. Just say, hypothetically, that Vipor is behind…something. Assume he's the cause of these energy drains. …Why? What would he possibly hope to gain from it? Why would he need to drain people's energy? The guy's built like six of Hassleberry."

"I suppose that's the greater mystery this year," said Atticus, "We'll have to get our detective caps on once we go back to school."

"_Entering the arena are Zane Truesdale and Irondi Fharr_!"

"My brother!" Syrus leaned forward in his seat.

Aster leaned back as the two duelists entered the arena.

"Who's Fharr?" asked Jim, "I've never heard of 'em before."

"I dunno," said Aster, "Maybe he's new, or visiting from a different league."

After the two duelists took their stances, Zane happened to look up and spotted them in the seats. _What are they doing here?_ His eyes finally locked on Aster, and immediately narrowed.

Aster matched Zane's gaze from above. He could almost see the wheels turning in Zane's head. Was he going to find him after the match and demand a duel?

"_Your plan is to wait to find the kid? If you haven't noticed, Truesdale, Phoenix's days are possibly numbered."_ Shrouds words resurfaced in his mind as the staring match continued. Zane wasn't sure entirely what he had meant by that statement, or the validity behind it…but there he was, up in the stands. It was the perfect opportunity to set up a match. He didn't have a problem challenging the younger champion, and he was positive that Phoenix wouldn't turn it down…but what if he lost?

"Hey," Fharr called from the other side of the arena, "You ready?"

Zane broke his gaze. "Tch. This won't take long."

* * *

Shroud watched from the shadows as Zane obliterated his opponent. From his vantage point in the stands, he could see Aster and his friends watching the match. It didn't seem like they were ready to leave once Zane left the arena, so he waited to see if his old star would make a move. Enough time elapsed that another group of players entered the field and still no sign of Zane. He waited a few more moments, then pulled out his cell and dialed a number.

It picked up after two rings, "_What?"_

"Truesdale isn't taking the bait."

The man on the other side of the line swore, "_This isn't good. Truesdale needs to be the scapegoat for the plan to work. Feed him something, _anything _that will get him talking to the kid before Saturday."_

"Did you learn who his opponent is on Saturday?"

"_Phoenix's dueling opponent is the most-guarded secret in the Leagues right now. Eavesdropping on the kid with Kaiba didn't reveal anything. And to have someone listen on his manager is a no-go. That man has a weird sixth sense._"

"I'll just have to improvise then." He stood and ended the call.

"Have you been keeping an eye on me?" asked a cold voice.

Shroud twisted around in his seat. Zane, arms crossed over his chest, stared down at him, eyes narrowed. "How'd you know I was up here?"

"I saw you when I spotted Phoenix in the audience. What are you doing here?"

"Forgive me for being in a public place during a public duel, Mr. Truesdale. Have you reconsidered my offer?"

"I already told you I don't need anyone to book matches for me."

"That's fine. I also noticed Mr. Phoenix in the stands. So I assume he accepted your challenge to duel?" He paused, "Oh…I take it you still haven't asked him."

"What I decide to do is none of your business, Shroud. What does it take for you to get the hint and stay out of my life?"

"I'm only thinking for your best interests. The only way you will be able to move anywhere in the Leagues is if you man up and challenge him. Otherwise you will _always _be second-best."

Zane scowled, "Well, _stop_. I live my own life the way I want to, and I will _not_ let someone like you tell me what to do. You are _not _my agent. You do _not _make the decisions for what I do and who I duel. You do _not _dictate my life. Stay out of it." Turning on his heel, Zane stalked off.

* * *

They were in the middle of watching their third match of the afternoon when Aster stood suddenly and headed towards the aisle.

"Where are you going?" asked Jaden.

"Just gonna stretch my legs for a minute. I'll be right back." Frowning, he stalked off towards the hall that led to the nosebleed seats and pushed through the arena exit doors. He was halfway down the hall when the door he was walking towards banged open and Zane Truesdale stalked out.

"Truesdale."

Zane paused, sneering down at Aster as if he was something unpleasant that was stuck on the sole of his boot. "Phoenix."

"I saw your match. Congrats on your win. It's a new record for you now, isn't it? Destroying your opponents in ten turns or less now?"

Zane scowled.

"…I _know_ you don't like me. But I can't say the same for your creepy manager. Does he have a habit of staring at people for long periods of time?"

Zane glared at his rival, "As much as he likes to believe otherwise, Shroud is _not _my manager. I kicked that snake to the streets a long time ago. Now if you excuse me, I have a duel to prepare for."

"Wait," Aster said, and Zane paused, "That's it? No 'I want a rematch, Phoenix'? No threats, jabs, no name-calling?"

Zane looked over his shoulder at the other teen, "I was told I would be participating in 'the biggest duel of my life' this Saturday…considering that there is no one else in the Leagues that would give me half of a challenge, that must mean I would be dueling you then."

Aster folded his arms across his chest, "That can't be."

Zane turned to face him, "What?"

Aster shook his head, "I was told the same thing. Saturday's match is going to be the biggest duel of my life too…but I haven't heard anything on who my opponent will be. What I do know…is that it's _not _you."

Zane's eyes shifted for a moment to the doors he had just walked through, and then focused on Aster again, "That doesn't make any sense. The only people in the Leagues to give a decent enough challenge to us…is each other."

Aster nodded, "I know…but oh well. Maybe some pro from another league is coming in."

"Hmph. If I'm not dueling you, then I don't need to worry. They don't stand a chance."

Aster watched Zane pause, as if he was debating whether or not to say something. He must have decided not to, and then stormed off towards an exit. Aster shrugged, walking into the stands, heading up the steps where he remembered Shroud was sitting.

He turned the corner, expecting to find the shady man waiting for him. No one was there.

Aster headed back to his seat with the others. _I saw Zane talking to the man. Zane left and I caught up to him. His creepy old manager was still there. So where did he go?_

* * *

That's all for now! A new poll is on my profile. I have four current fanfics going on right now. Which ones should I finish up first? It's up to you to decide!

Until next time!


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